This week, six former members of CRADLE OF FILTH filed a lawsuit against frontman Dani Filth, the band’s affiliated business entities, and their management company. The plaintiffs list includes Zoë Marie Federoff, Marek “Ashok” Smerda, Lindsay Schoolcraft (aka Lindsay Matheson), Paul Allender, Richard Shaw and Sasha Baxter. They claim the band has continued to exploit their images and performances long after their departure.

The plaintiffs allege that the band and its management engaged in unauthorized commercial use of their likenesses (including merchandise, vinyl releases, posters and meet-and-greet promotions) without proper permission or compensation. 

The complaint also accuses CRADLE OF FILTH of unpaid royalties for live performances and recorded works. In particular, Federoff, Smerda and Schoolcraft say they never signed agreements allowing their recorded performances to be exploited commercially, yet the band allegedly profited from those recordings. Additional claims include alleged misuse of original artwork (in the case of Schoolcraft’s “sigils”), failure to return or compensate for destroyed or missing equipment and the nonpayment of fees for the group’s final shows together in August. 

The plaintiffs are seeking broad relief. They want the defendants to stop selling any merchandise featuring their likenesses and destroy remaining stock, demand compensation and damages for lost income, reputational harm, emotional distress and request their legal fees be covered. As of now, the defendants have not formally responded to the lawsuit.