BTO Members Taking Care of Legal Business

Fans of the 70’s Canadian super group, Bachman Turner Overdrive (also commonly known as BTO), may have noted the report of a legal dispute between current and former band members over the rights to the band’s trademarks. The mark BACHMAN-TURNER OVERDRIVE is the subject of two registrations in the Canadian Intellectual Property Office and there are several pending applications for similar marks.

While disputes between ex-band mates are not unusual, this one has an added twist in that it pits one brother (Randy Bachman, widely considered the most talented member) versus another (Robbie).

While this appears to be primarily a contractual dispute, the trademark issues are front and centre and serve to highlight the value of branding to musical groups, both during their heydey and into later years when remaining members (and often non-members) continue to live off the avails of a group’s prior glories.

Perhaps one day someone will turn this family feud into a Broadway musical – “Peg Boys” might be a nice nod to the Winnipeg roots of the band.

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Neil Melliship

Neil Melliship is a Partner and co-chair of the Intellectual Property and Information Technology practice groups at the Vancouver-based Canadian law firm of Clark Wilson LLP. Neil is a lawyer and a registered Canadian Trademark Agent, who actively speaks and writes on trademark and other IP issues including those relating to the Internet, domain name disputes and e-commerce. Neil is consistently rated as a Leading Trademark Practitioner—Individuals: Prosecution and Strategy, by the World Trademark Review (WTR) 1000. Neil is also listed in the Canadian Legal Lexpert Directory as Rated Repeatedly Recommended in the area of Intellectual Property. He has also been repeatedly named by Best Lawyers in Canada in the categories of Intellectual Property Law, Technology Law and Information Technology Law.