The lawsuit against grunge legends Nirvana brought forth by the man who appeared on the cover of their iconic album “Nevermind” as an infant is back on. Earlier this week, it was revealed that Nirvana won the latest round in the case, with it once again being dismissed after a judge ruled the failed to meet the criteria of ‘child pornography’. Spencer Elden put forth that suit against the band, having appeared naked on the cover of that album while an infant in a photoshoot overseen with the consent of his parents.
Elden, now in his 30s, was shown over the years to have actively embraced the distinction of being featured on that cover, including getting ‘Nevermind‘ tattooed on him, as well as recreating the photo shoot back in 2016, among other related activities. However, he went on to file suit against the band in August of 2021. In his complaint, he alleged that he had suffered “lifelong damages” due to being featured on the album, which went on to shift over 13 million copies in the United States alone. He further characterized the image on the cover as being tantamount to child pornography.
Since then the suit has undergone various twists and turns, including an early 2022 dismissal due to a lack of response from a motion put forth by the band. It was quickly revived days afterwards. In September of 2022, the case was once again dismissed, this time with prejudice as the judge cited concerns regarding the statute of limitations.
However, Elden‘s legal team managed to successfully appeal that dismissal, invoking Masha’s Law — a federal law that grants potential extensions beyond the standard statute of limitations when child pornography-related offenses are involved.
As this latest dismissal was not made with prejudice, Elden and his legal team were free to once again appeal the ruling. As Billboard now report, Elden has made moves to do just that. An appeal was put forth on Thursday, October 02nd. An attorney representing Nirvana, Universal Music Group and the cover’s photographer Kirk Weddle told the aforementioned publication of this latest appeal, “We will resist with vigor and will prevail.”
