The Guess Who lawsuit is actually two connected cases: a 2023 trademark and false-advertising suit that founding members Burton Cummings and Randy Bachman brought against drummer Garry Peterson and bassist Jim Kale, which settled in September 2024 with Cummings and Bachman acquiring the band’s name; and a 2026 federal suit that Peterson and Kale then filed against the performing rights organization BMI over the cancellation of their 2024 tour.
Why the Name Was in Dispute
The Guess Who’s classic lineup came together in Winnipeg in 1966: Bachman, Cummings, Kale, and Peterson. None of them trademarked the name during the band’s commercial peak. Bachman left in 1970, Kale in 1972, and Cummings went solo in 1975, effectively ending the original group.
In 1986, Kale registered “The Guess Who” as a U.S. service mark (Registration No. 1425229), claiming a first use in commerce date of November 1977. Cummings and Bachman later alleged in court filings that the date was false because no version of the band was performing live in 1977. Kale toured with replacement musicians for decades, Peterson joined those lineups in the late 1980s, and in 2005 Kale assigned the trademark rights to a partnership with Peterson. After Kale retired from the road in 2016, Peterson was the last original member performing under the name.
The 2023 Trademark and False Advertising Suit
On October 30, 2023, Cummings and Bachman sued Kale, Peterson, and their band entity in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California (Case No. 2:23-cv-09130). The complaint invoked the Lanham Act (15 U.S.C. § 1125(a)), California’s Unfair Competition Law (Bus. & Prof. Code § 17200), and the state’s False Advertising Law (Bus. & Prof. Code § 17500).
The plaintiffs called the Peterson-Kale touring group a “cover band” running a deceptive scheme to make fans believe they were seeing the original act. The specific allegations included:
- Advertisements for the touring band listed hit songs and accolades tied to the original lineup, implying Cummings and Bachman would perform.
- Social media posts and event promotions used 1969 and 1970 photographs of the original members to sell tickets to current shows.
- Photographs on Spotify, Apple Music, and other streaming platforms were allegedly swapped so that images of the original members were replaced with the current lineup, blurring the line between the two groups.
- Advertisement videos featured Cummings’s vocals and songs written by the plaintiffs without synchronization or master use licenses.
Cummings and Bachman sought more than $20 million in damages plus injunctive relief requiring corrective advertising to venues and the public.
How Cummings Cut Off the Songs Through BMI
While the case was pending, Cummings used his publishing rights as leverage. He terminated the performing rights agreement for the songs he owns through BMI, the organization that licenses music for live venues. Because Cummings holds the publishing rights to the band’s biggest hits, venues hosting the Peterson-Kale lineup could no longer legally feature those songs in the setlist.
The effect was immediate. On April 6, 2024, Peterson and Kale were reportedly at a soundcheck when BMI’s chief legal officer told them Cummings had ended the agreement “effective immediately.” Their 2024 U.S. tour was cancelled.
The 2024 Settlement
After what both sides described as “many hours” of mediation in Los Angeles, the parties announced a settlement on September 4, 2024. Cummings and Bachman acquired the trademark to “The Guess Who.” Other terms were confidential, and whether any of the more than $20 million sought in damages changed hands was not disclosed.
The settlement required the Peterson-Kale group to stop using the name. Their Facebook page came down, their X account was cleared, and the group rebranded as “Plein D’Amour,” the title of a studio album they had released under the old name in 2023. That lineup, with Peterson on drums alongside vocalist Derek Sharp, keyboardist Leonard Shaw, guitarist Michael Staertow, and bassist Michael Devin, has kept touring. Sharp told Goldmine Magazine the group plays roughly 60 shows a year. Peterson called the rebrand “a continuation of a long legacy.”
The 2026 Lawsuit Against BMI
On February 3, 2026, Peterson, Kale, and their booking company BiCoastal Productions filed a federal lawsuit in Manhattan against BMI. The complaint is about the cancelled 2024 tour, not the name.
The plaintiffs claim BMI misrepresented when Cummings’s termination of his performing rights agreement actually took effect. Most commercial contracts require a notice period before termination, they argue, and a copyright holder should not be able to give notice “effective immediately” in a way that forces the cancellation of concerts already planned, organized, and promoted. If BMI got the effective date wrong, the plaintiffs say, the tour could have gone forward during the notice period. In the alternative, they argue that if the termination truly was immediate, BMI’s licensing system is “fundamentally flawed” for failing to give performers any reliability.
The complaint pleads four claims: breach of fiduciary duty, negligent misrepresentation, intentional interference with contractual relations, and fraud. Peterson and Kale seek compensatory damages estimated at several million dollars, to be determined at trial, plus punitive damages for conduct they describe as “willful, oppressive, fraudulent, and malicious.” Attorney Michael Machat represents them.
BMI has denied the allegations. A spokesperson said “there is no merit to this lawsuit,” asserting that BMI “responded accurately and in accordance with the information provided to us by SOCAN,” the Canadian performing rights society that represents Cummings as a copyright holder. As of mid-2026, no court rulings or motions to dismiss in the case have been publicly reported.
Where Things Stand Now
With the trademark secured, Cummings and Bachman launched the “Takin’ It Back Tour” in 2026, their first tour together as The Guess Who in 23 years, beginning January 31, 2026, in Niagara Falls and continuing into a North American summer run with Don Felder opening.1Rock Cellar Magazine. The Guess Who Tour 2026 With Don Felder Helen Yu’s firm, Yu Leseberg, which represents Cummings and Bachman, has said the BMI litigation “has no association with the current band or the epic reunion tour” and that Peterson and Kale “have no basis or right to use the trademark name the Guess Who.”2CBC. Guess Who Legal Battle 2026 Peterson’s suit against BMI remains pending in federal court in Manhattan.