TBA Law Blog


Posted by: Kate Prince on Jul 10, 2020

Country music group Lady A, formerly Lady Antebellum, has filed a trademark lawsuit against a Seattle-based singer by the same name, the Tennessean reports. Last month, the band renounced the name Antebellum, citing “associations that weigh down this word,” including ties to slavery. Soon after the change, singer Anita White, who also goes by Lady A, took to social media to express her anger over the name change and vow to never give up her name. The next week, both Lady As announced they’d talked privately and come to an agreement to share the moniker. However, White reversed course soon after and asked the band for a $10 million payment, prompting them to file a trademark lawsuit against her in a federal district court in Nashville. The band isn’t asking for monetary damages, but are asking the court for a declaratory judgment that their trademarked uses of Lady A "do not infringe any of White's alleged trademark rights in "Lady A."