Who owns the band name?

Band names typically qualify as trademarks, and trademarks can be assigned by contract. “A band agreement, in a lot of ways, is like a prenup,” Chodosh said. “It’s about what will happen if things go wrong and somebody leaves, which nobody wants to talk about. Bands don’t start to hate each other until they’re successful.”

Most bands…never establish contractually how the band trademark is owned. In the absence of a contract, she added, “Trademark law prevails. And because trademark law is not uncomplicated, it’s difficult to say who owns that trademark.”

This has happened with Queensryche, Guns-n-Roses, and LA Guns, to name only a very, very few.

More here.

Tags: artlaw, Contracts, name of rock bands, partnerships, rock bands, trademarks