A busy day in the pop courts actually. More Beach Boys litigation now, and some bad luck for Mike Love in his ongoing legal battles with a former bandmate.
This is the dispute between Love and fellow founding Beach Boy Al Jardine which is so long and tedious, going over old ground is likely to bring back the headache I woke up this morning. But, in one sentence, Jardine unsuccessfully sued Love in 2001 alleging he was unfairly excluded from Beach Boys tours, and then Love sued Jardine in 2003 claiming his former bandmate was illegally using the Beach Boys name in his solo music projects, because according to past agreements only Love was allowed to use the Beach Boys name. Actually, that wasn't so bad.
Part of Love's lawsuit against Jardine was dismissed last year, but the remaining part of the suit continues to rumble on. Love had applied to the courts for a motion to rule in his favour in order to bring the litigation to an end without going to trial, but Superior Court Judge James R Dunn yesterday denied that application, saying there was enough evidence on both sides of this dispute to justify it going to court properly.
Dunn didn't set any timescale for that trial, but Jardine's lawyer, Lawrence Noble, said the judge had told him and Love's legal people to update him at the end of February with regards to the status of the dispute. Noble: "The judge will then decide on a trial date, or if there should be mediation or additional motions. Hopefully, this case will go away and Al Jardine can focus on making his music for his fans and not fending off this litigation".
Love's people are yet to comment.