RATT Trademark Infringement Suit Unplugged by 9th Cir. (1)

An original member of the heavy metal rock band RATT has finished shredding a bid to block his use of the band’s name.

Bassist Juan Croucier convinced the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit to affirm a lower court ruling that he’d never lost his share of RATT trademark rights.

The case highlighted that while a trademark registration creates a presumption of ownership, that can be thwarted by evidence that the rights were illegitimate. It also illustrated the sometimes messy nature of band trademark rights as membership evolves and parties contest rights.

No evidence showed Croucier had been ...