Mötley Crüe guitarist Mick Mars is embroiled in a legal battle with the band, claiming that he was unfairly separated from the group. His lawyer has confirmed that the dispute is scheduled to be resolved through private arbitration later this year.
Allegations and Legal Proceedings
- Mars alleges that Mötley Crüe reduced his share of earnings from 25 percent to 5 percent after he expressed his decision to withdraw from touring.
- He further claims that the band’s attorneys implied that he should be grateful for this reduced share and asserted that they had no obligation to provide him with anything.
- Mars asserts that he was unilaterally excluded from the band during a complete band gathering, and he accuses bassist Nikki Sixx of “gaslighting” him by suggesting his guitar abilities were declining.
- Mars‘s lawyer, Ed McPherson, cited a recent ruling by a judge, which indicated that Mötley Crüe delayed producing certain requested documents, as evidence supporting Mars‘s claims of mistreatment by his bandmates.
“Finally, somebody, somewhere told these guys they can’t bully Mick anymore,” McPherson said. “We’re in the middle of a huge arbitration that will ultimately decide if Mick has to give up his shares or not, if they did things properly or not. Obviously we claim they didn’t do anything properly. But they feel that they’re above the rules. And that’s what this lawsuit was about.”
“This was them feeling they were above the rules, and this judge saying, ‘No, you’re not. And you may have given all the documents now, so there’s nothing left for me to do, but, you’re going to pay for it,” he added. “I think that’s a pretty huge victory for Mick. If they want to claim a victory, that’s fine. But this is someone finally telling Mick, ‘No, you’re not crazy. These guys are bullying you. And we’re not going to let it happen.’”