The members of Mastodon have asked a judge to dismiss parts of a lawsuit filed by the estate of the band’s late former guitarist, Brent Hinds, according to Rolling Stone. The filing, submitted on Monday, disputes claims over Hinds’ ownership share in the band and the use of his image on their recent album cover.
Billy Hinds, the father of Brent Hinds, filed the lawsuit on behalf of the estate. The band’s legal response contests several key allegations, including claims about money owed from using Hinds’ likeness on the “Marrow Deep” album cover and disputes over how his stake in the band was handled when he left.
“The members of Mastodon filed paperwork on Monday asking a judge to dismiss parts of a lawsuit that Billy Hinds — the father of the band’s late former guitarist, Brent Hinds — filed on behalf of the estate of Brent Hinds against them,” Rolling Stone reported. “Much of the 20-page filing picks apart the phrasing of the original complaint. ‘These distinctions matter,’ it says in the filing.”
In the court paperwork, Mastodon’s lawyers argue that large parts of the case lack legal merit. “In the memorandum, obtained by Rolling Stone, they dispute that they owe the guitarist’s estate any money from using Hinds’ likeness on the cover art for their recently released album, Marrow Deep, and take issue with the ‘buyout process’ related to divesting Hinds of Mastodon’s business interests,” the report continued. “‘Even assuming the truth of the Estate’s allegations, large swaths of the Complaint’s legal theories fail to state a claim and should be dismissed,’ the band’s lawyers write in the paperwork.”
Regarding the estate’s claim that the band stole Hinds’ 25 percent ownership interest, the band’s lawyers argue the accusation does not hold up.
“In a section contesting the Hinds estate’s allegations of ‘breach of fiduciary duty,’ they stand by the decision to use his image on their album cover,” Rolling Stone further reported. “They claim that the estate failed to prove a fiduciary relationship between the band and the use of the image in the artwork. And in another section addressing ‘conversion’ (theft), they contest allegations that they stole Hinds’ 25 percent ownership interest in the band. ‘While the Estate alleges that [Mastodon] purported to redeem those interests and refused to recognize its rights, there is no allegation that [Mastodon] seized, transferred, or withheld any stock certificates or other documents embodying Hinds’s interests,’ according to the filing.”
Mastodon also disputes the estate’s allegations about the “buyout process” used when Hinds left the band. In their filing, they contend that even if the estate’s claims were true, the legal theories behind them still fail to support the case.
The legal battle centers on Hinds’ former stake in Mastodon and the use of his image following his death.
Brent Hinds died in a motorcycle crash in Atlanta on August 20, 2025, at age 51. The guitarist and vocalist had left Mastodon in March 2025 after 25 years with the Grammy-winning heavy metal band.
The estate claims that Hinds had not agreed to give up his ownership share in Mastodon at the time of his death. After he died, the estate was offered an $80,000 check to buy out the share, which it has not yet cashed. The dispute over his stake forms one part of the legal action now before the court.
The other key dispute involves the use of Hinds’ image. After his departure in March 2025, Mastodon continued to use his photo in promotional materials, including on the cover of “Marrow Deep,” the band’s first studio album recorded without him, which came out in August 2026. The estate says the band owes money for using Hinds’ likeness this way without permission or compensation.
The split between Hinds and Mastodon became public in August 2025, when Hinds commented on one of the band’s Instagram posts to say that his departure was not mutual. In July 2026, as the band promoted “Marrow Deep,” Mastodon members addressed the split openly for the first time, citing his substance issues and waning involvement in the band. The estate has alleged that the band had promised not to disclose details about Hinds’ exit.
