The Reason Stone Temple Pilots Filed A Lawsuit Against Scott Weiland

Formed in 1989, Stone Temple Pilots originally featured the members Scott Weiland, Dean DeLeo, Robert DeLeo, and Eric Kretz. This lineup remained the same since the band’s formation up until the departure of Scott Weiland in February 2013. Following that, Linkin Park frontman joined the band for two years between 2013 and 2015. After Bennington left the band to focus on his career with Linkin Park, Jeff Gut joined STP as the new lead singer on November 14, 2017.

Throughout their career with Weiland, the band earned major success with the albums they released. However, their successful presence in the music scene became affected by Weiland’s struggle with his drug addiction. Due to the tensions between Weiland and the band, STP officially fired the singer. This move became a turning point for the conflict between the two sides, and the band even filed a lawsuit against Weiland. Let’s learn the reason why they did such a thing.

Stone Temple Pilots Filed A Lawsuit Against Weiland Because His Actions Damaged The Band

Back in 2013, members of Stone Temple Pilots sued the band’s former frontman, Scott Weiland. According to the lawsuit, Weiland has violated his duties and used the band’s name to support his solo career. Moreover, the suit mainly targeted the band’s 20th anniversary tour in 2012, claiming Weiland’s actions damaged the band.

On September 17, at a performance during the aforementioned tour, STP arrived on the stage two hours late. They then cut their set 30 minutes short which upset many of their fans. The next day, the band canceled that night’s show due to Weiland’s strained vocal cords. In fact, the band didn’t even want to do the celebration in the first place due to Weiland’s deteriorating singing abilities.

Nevertheless, the lawsuit also charged the singer with breach of contract, violating STP’s rights, sabotaging the band‘s 20th-anniversary tour by skipping shows, and showing up late for the performances. According to the band, Weiland’s lack of commitment resulted in a financial loss of millions, and also loss of business opportunities. According to the lawsuit, the damages worth over $2 million.

Following that, Stone Temple Pilots released a statement on their website revealing the details. They stated that the band has a binding agreement, and Weiland’s actions violated this and prevented the band from moving forward. STP then stated they had enough, and are excited about making new music with Chester.

As reported by USA Today, Stone Temple Pilots’ statement read:

“Without getting into legal details, the band has a binding agreement that clearly states what each of us can and cannot do outside of STP. Unfortunately, many of the decisions Scott made violate this agreement, have been harmful to the band, and prevented us from moving forward.

When our requests to Scott and his representatives that they abide by the agreement were ignored, we finally had enough. So now, we’ve made our choice. It was beyond time we made some new music, which was impossible in the dysfunctional environment we were in. We’ve lived in it long enough and have decided to move forward with STP. We wish Scott well. We’re really excited about the new music we’ve been making with Chester, including the song we just released, ‘Out of Time.'”

On May 31, 2013, Weiland filed a $7 million countersuit against his former Stone Temple Pilots bandmates. He claimed they don’t have the legal right to expel him from STP and to use the band’s name. However, the DeLeo brothers retained the right to perform under the name Stone Temple Pilots and moved on without Weiland.