L.A GUNS’ TRACII GUNS AND PHIL LEWIS SETTLE TRADEMARK LITIGATION WITH FORMER DRUMMER STEPHEN RILEY
As previously reported, guitarist Tracii Guns, and singer Phil Lewis, have been in an ongoing legal dispute with the band’s former drummer, Stephen Riley, over the use of band name L.A. Guns. A settlement has been reach and an official statement issued:
“Plaintiffs Tracii Guns and Philip Lewis and defendants Stephen Riley, Kelly Nickels, Kurt Frolich, and Scott Griffin have agreed to settle the trademark litigation currently pending in the U.S. District Court in the Central District of California. Under the terms of the settlement agreement, the parties have agreed to dismiss the pending lawsuit. Mr. Guns and Mr. Lewis will continue to operate under the L.A. Guns‘ trademark, while Mr. Riley and his bandmates will now operate under the new name, Riley’s L.A. Guns‘ and a new logo. Both bands look forward to continuing to record and perform their new music, as well as continuing to include songs from the vintage L.A. Guns catalog for their fans. Both groups’ recordings will continue to appear together on Spotify and other digital music streaming services. –Attorneys Erik J. Foley and G. Warren Bleeker, counsel for Tracii Guns and Philip Lewis; and Attorney S. Martin Keleti, counsel for Stephen Riley, et al.”
Steps To Follow When Forming A Band:
1. Trademark the band name and logo.
Cool . Now Riley cant get a free ride on the success of the real LA Guns .
Oh, good lord… I like the first LA GUNS record a lot. But come on, Riley’s LA GUNS? This is getting to be as bad as what SWEET was doing. First of all, let’s face it: nobody cares. No different than Skid Row with singer of the month. If it isn’t the classic lineup, it just isn’t. And even then, good luck. Does anyone in any version of LA GUNS think owning the name is going to make any difference? Also, if people show up to a gig, at the end of the day at the very least, if it isn’t Phil and Tracii, the voice and the sound, the songs won’t sound like LA GUNS, so Riley, you lose. Think of it this way: Rob Affuso’s Skid Row. Fred Coury’s Cinderella. You know why those examples are fiction? I’m sure you do.
I could not agree more ~