Local H Sues Former Drummer For Selling Unauthorized Band Posters
Local H lead singer Scott Lucas is suing the group’s former drummer Joe Daniels for trademark infringement, false advertising, cybersquatting, unfair competition and other counts, according to documents filed in U.S. District Court in Illinois on Saturday.
According to the complaint, Daniels — who left the band in 1999 after nine years — set up a website in 2018 that lists three different posters for sale, all bearing the Local H trademark, which Lucas says he solely owns through his company Lifers, Inc. Images of the posters included with the suit show that all three feature the Local H band name along with images of Lucas and Daniels side-by-side.
Daniels is said to be selling 400 copies of each poster at $20 a piece. The complaint states that 915 posters had been sold as of Saturday, an amount equivalent to $18,300.
“Daniels has in bad faith intended to profit from the use of the [Trade]Marks and/or at worst upon information and belief intended to divert sales of authorized products away from Lifers,” the complaint reads.
Among other things, Lucas is asking the court to permanently enjoin Daniels from using the trademark, force him to return all posters bearing the trademark “for destruction or disposition” and order him to turn over all profits from the posters’ sale to Lucas. He is additionally seeking damages, including “full compensation for the injury to Lifers’ goodwill and business reputation.”
The complaint claims Lucas personally reached out to Daniels in late March 2019, only for Daniels to threaten him with legal action over “various unknown frivolous claims.” Daniels allegedly threatened legal action again after receiving a cease and desist letter from Lucas’s legal team on April 11.
Local H was formed in 1990 in Zion, Illinois, by Lucas, Daniels, bassist Matt Garcia and guitarist John Sparkman. After signing to Island Records, the group rose to prominence with the 1996 single “Bound for the Floor,” which peaked at No. 5 on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart. The group, of which Lucas is the sole constant member, has released a total of eight studio albums in addition to numerous EPs and live albums.
Daniels did not respond to Billboard’s request for comment at time of publishing.
This article originally appeared on Billboard.