STONE TEMPLE PILOTS Vs. SCOTT WEILAND: Court Documents Posted Online

STONE TEMPLE PILOTS members Robert DeLeo (bass),Dean DeLeo (guitar) and Eric Kretz (drums) filed a lawsuit against their former lead singer Scott Weiland claiming that he sabotaged their 20th anniversary tour by being chronically late for performances and missing promotional gigs. They also allege Weiland refused to communicate with other bandmembers in an attempt to "hijack" the tour. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the suit claims that Weiland's breach of contract is worth over $2 million but that the exact amount will be "proven at trial." The suit also asks that Weiland cease using the STONE TEMPLE PILOTS name to promote his solo career or related endeavors.

"Enough is enough," the lawsuit reads. "Without relief from the court, Weiland will continue violating STP's rights, misappropriating STP assets and interfering with the band's livelihood."

A copy of the complaint, which was filed this past Friday, May 24 with the Los Angeles Superior Court, can be found as a PDF file at HollywoodReporter.com.

STP officially fired Weiland in February after weeks of rumors about his status, issuing a terse statement that read, "STONE TEMPLE PILOTS have announced they have officially terminated Scott Weiland."

This was the second time that the band has parted ways with its often troubled frontman, following a split in 2002.

Weiland, who was about to launch a solo tour at the time of his dismissal, denied at first that he had been fired, saying that STONE TEMPLE PILOTS legally could not exist or use that name without all four members of the group in the lineup.

He reiterated that view during an interview with a Nevada radio station, saying, "I started the band . . . there's things in place, like certain clauses that are in place that keep that from happening."

Fans were shocked when STONE TEMPLE PILOTS made a surprise appearance at a radio festival in the Los Angeles area last Saturday (May 18),with LINKIN PARK's Chester Bennington making his debut as the new STP lead singer.

The group performed a new song called "Out Of Time" at the show, putting a studio version online earlier this week. The DeLeo brothers and Kretz now claim in the lawsuit Weiland got vindictive and tried to interfere with the release of the single. Weiland's lawyer, according to the lawsuit, called the head of programming at the Los Angeles radio station KROQ and said if the station played "Out Of Time", it would be infringing on Weiland's rights.

The suit notes that STP "plans to record a seventh studio album, its first with Bennington," which confirms Chester's recent statements that he was planning on doing more recording and touring with STP, while remaining in LINKIN PARK.

Weiland responded to the lawsuit with a letter posted on his social media sites. In it, the singer said, "The band that played last weekend was not STONE TEMPLE PILOTS, and it was wrong of them to present themselves as that." He added, "They don't have the legal right to call themselves STP because I'm still a member of the band. And more importantly, they don't have the ethical right to call themselves STONE TEMPLE PILOTS because it's misleading and dishonest to the millions of fans that have followed us for so many years."

He also wrote: "I don't give a fuck what they call themselves, but it's not STONE TEMPLE PILOTS."