While the Tres Pinos-based band “One Direction” pursues a lawsuit against the world-famous British Band for using the same name, the U.K group is contending in a lawsuit that the local musicians actually took their moniker, according to media reports.
The local five-member band has claimed it was formed before manager Simon Cowell put his group, comprised of contestants from the TV show “X Factor,” together in 2010 and sued the U.K band for $1 million. The Tres Pinos “One Direction” says it filed for a trademark on its name in February 2011 and claims ownership to the moniker.
Now, the British band has countersued to ensure use of the “One Direction” name, according to Rolling Stone.
“One Direction’s lawyers have now had to file an Answer and Counterclaim in order to defend and assert the band’s right to use their name,” according to the statement published in the Rolling Stone magazine story. “The Answer and Counterclaim makes it clear that it is One Direction who have prior rights to the name in the U.S. as it was One Direction who used the name in interstate commerce in the US first.”
The British One Direction band remains hot overseas and in the United States, with tour dates booked through 2013 in the United Kingdom. The squabble between the bands has been followed by the entertainment press such as TMZ, MTV and the “Today” show.
Dan O’Leary, whose 18-year-old son Sean is the lead singer of the Tres Pinos band, has said a response to the lawsuit was due by June 21.
A month after the response was due on the lawsuit, the local One Direction band is scheduled to play at the 26th annual Street Festival and Car Show in downtown Hollister and it is working on securing other performance dates as well.
