Talk about “Second Hand News.” The members of Fleetwood Mac claimed they did not immediately receive the lawsuit that their former bandmate Lindsey Buckingham filed against them.
“It’s impossible for the band to offer comment on a legal complaint they have not seen,” a spokesperson for Fleetwood Mac said in a statement to Rolling Stone on Thursday, October 11. “It’s fairly standard legal procedure to service the complaint to the parties involved, something that neither Mr. Buckingham nor his legal counsel have done, which makes one wonder what the true motivations are when servicing press first with a legal complaint before the parties in dispute.”
However, the group’s spokesperson released an update to Us Weekly on Friday, October 12: “Fleetwood Mac strongly dispute the allegations presented in Mr. Buckingham’s complaint and look forward to their day in court. The band has retained Dan Petrocelli to handle the case.”
The guitarist, 69, sued Stevie Nicks, Mick Fleetwood, Christine McVie and John McVie on Tuesday, October 9, after he was fired from the rock band’s 2018 to 2019 tour. Buckingham claimed in court documents obtained by Us that “not a single member of the band” called him to tell him that he was not on the lineup. He accused them of breach of fiduciary duty, breach of oral contract and intentional interference with prospective economic advantage.
After filing the lawsuit, Buckingham released a statement of his own to Rolling Stone: “Last January, Fleetwood Mac made the decision to continue to tour without me. I remain deeply surprised and saddened, as this decision ends the beautiful 43-year legacy we built together. Over the last eight months, our many efforts to come to an agreement have unfortunately proved elusive. I’m looking forward to closure, and will always remain proud of all that we created, and what that legacy represents.”
Buckingham joined Fleetwood Mac in 1975 and voluntarily left in 1987, only to return a decade later. He last performed with the band in January at the 2018 MusiCares Person of the Year ceremony.
