Mötley Crüe score victory in Mick Mars legal battle
Mötley Crüe have scored a legal victory in their legal battle with former guitarist Mick Mars, who has also been ordered to pay them back a heavy sum.
Mars, who retired from touring with the rock group in 2022 due to health issues, launched a legal filing against his former bandmates in 2024.
He claimed that they had conspired to oust him from the band’s business dealings, stating that he had only stopped touring but had not left the band. Mars held a 25 per cent stake in Mötley Crüe Inc.
Additionally, he alleged that Nikki Sixx didn’t play his bass live during their 2022 tour, which Sixx strongly denied.
Now, an independent arbitrator has ruled in favour of Mötley Crüe. They have also ruled that Mars must also pay back more than $750,000 that he was paid as an advance for tour dates that he didn’t participate in.
In a press release following their victory, the band declared, “Mötley Crüe has won a decisive victory against former guitarist, Mick Mars, resulting in a final arbitration award that rejects every claim Mars made against the band and orders him to pay damages back to the group.”
It continues, “The arbitrator’s ruling not only vindicates the band contractually and financially but also dismantles the public narrative Mars promoted in interviews with major outlets.”
The statement noted that “Mars forfeited any right to touring revenue when he chose to stop touring—a rule Mars himself demanded and wrote into the band’s governing agreement in 2008″.
Mötley Crüe also condemned Mars for his comments that alleged the band didn’t perform their instruments live at concerts, stating, “Mars was forced to admit under oath that his statements were false. His expert confirmed that the band performed live, and Mars formally recanted his prior claims during sworn testimony.”
The band’s lead counsel, Sasha Frid, also said of the victory, “This dispute was about protecting the integrity and legacy of one of the most successful bands in rock history. With the arbitrator rejecting every claim and enforcing the parties’ agreements as written, the band has been fully vindicated—legally, financially, and factually.”
Mick Mars is yet to respond to the legal defeat.
Never Miss A Beat
The Far Out Music Newsletter
All the latest music news from the independent voice of culture.
Straight to your inbox.