Jason Singh Wins Trade Mark Legal Battle With Former Taxiride Bandmates

According to new documentation published by the Australian Trade Marks Office, Jason Singh has prevailed in a trade mark legal battle with former Taxiride bandmates Tim Watson and Tim Wild.

Two years after Watson and Wild attempted to claim the Taxiride name and exclude the former frontman, IP Australia delivered the win for Singh on 22 February 2024.

In November 2021, Singh released a statement about the “Upcoming Shows Advertised As ‘Taxiride'” in which he said, “Unfortunately, for reasons unknown, other members have recently taken it upon themselves to make decisions without my consultation or consent... This is by no means a stepping down from the band announcement—There is no Taxiride without me.”

In October 2022, he accused his former bandmates of re-registering the expired Taxiride name without him a year prior. Singh wrote on Instagram, “I am challenging this to ensure that what is right and what is fair happens - that the trademark be registered back in the names of the rightful owners: Jason Singh, Dan Hall, Tim Wild and Tim Watson. This challenge, at great expense to me, has been going on for over a year now.”

The IP Australia decision in Jason Singh v Tim Watson & Tim Wild [2024] ATMO 33 has determined that “the Applicants [Tim Watson and Tim Wild] are not the owners of the Trade Mark” in paragraph 42 of the findings from the Trade Mark Registrar's Delegate, Tracey Berger.

Berger’s findings continue in paragraph 48: “There is clear evidence that the Opponent [Jason Singh] and the Applicants jointly owned and used the Trade Mark for many years, and I do not consider that the 2-hour phone conversation between the Opponent and Mr Watson erases that long history.

“In my opinion, the Opponent’s lack of interest in performing with the Applicants does not amount to an abandonment of the Trade Mark, a mark which he jointly owned with others for many years, nor does it amount to consent to the Applicants performing under the Trade Mark. Whether or not a partnership between the Applicants and Opponent still existed at the Relevant Date, the Trade Mark and any other assets of the partnership are still jointly held by the individuals and cannot simply be seized by the Applicants.”

In paragraph 49, Berger concluded, “I find that the Applicants are not the owners of the Trade Mark.”

In response to the end of the lengthy legal battle, Singh said in a statement viewed by The Music, “I am pleased with the outcome and grateful for the recognition of my rights to the Taxiride trade mark. While this decision reaffirms my longstanding association with the brand and recognises my rightful ownership, this victory is not something I want to celebrate. I am just so hurt and disappointed that this ever happened, not just for me but for the fans.”

Singh has called the ordeal an “unnecessary, costly, two-and-a-half-year battle”. He continued, “I’m still in the dark as to what prompted this ill-fated takeover by Wild and Watson, especially after I worked so hard on bringing the band back together in 2015.

“Since 2021, Wild and Watson have cut me out and cut me off from the band’s commercial decisions. There have been numerous shows that were booked and promoted as Taxiride without me and without my consent.”

“All the good times are in the background for me now, unfortunately. And it’s just all the hurt that surfaces for me every time I see what they’re attempting to do.”