New Order announce legal settlement with Peter Hook

Having just finished their Hollywood Bowl gig, New Order have announced that the band has reached “a full and final settlement” in the long running disputes with  former bassist and founding member Peter Hook over his use of “various New Order and Joy Division assets.” and the royalties Hooky has received since 2011.

The band announced the settlement via neworder.com, with no details of the terms of the settlement disclosed at this time. See the tweet below announcing the post on the band’s website.

Peter Hook had sued his former bandmates back in 2015 claiming he had lost £2.3 million since the other three members of the band set up a new company in 2011 to handle New Order’s assets. Here are some details regarding the lawsuit from the BBC:

Hook parted company with the band in 2007, but the other members carried on without him and continued to use the New Order name.

Hook owns 25% of Vitalturn but was absent when the other three – who own 75% – set up a new company, New Order Ltd, in 2011.

They granted the new company worldwide exclusive rights to the New Order name and the related sources of income for 10 years.

Hook’s barrister Mark Wyeth QC said the “clandestine, premeditated and deliberate” move had cost the bassist £2.3m by October last year and his losses were continuing.

Mr Wyeth said: “It was as though George Harrison and Ringo Starr had got together at George’s house one Friday night and had acted together to divest Paul McCartney of his shareholding in the Beatles, and didn’t tell Yoko about it either.”

New Order Ltd has generated £7.8m income over four years, the court heard. Hook is receiving 1.25% of the band’s royalties and other income from merchandising and performances. But he wants up to 12.5%.

The rest of New Order, namely Bernard Sumner, Stephen Morris, and Gillian (Gilbert) Morris, felt that Peter Hook had been receiving his fair share of royalties. They also took issue with the way Peter Hook was using New Order and Joy Division assets in his promotion of his own Peter Hook & The Light concerts and tours that featured setlists comprised of material only from the catalogs of those two groups.

Here’s the full New Order statement on the settlement:

New Order announce that today, a full and final settlement has been reached in the long running disputes with their former bassist Peter Hook.

The disputes were based upon Hook’s use of various New Order and Joy Division assets on merchandising and in the promotion of shows by his new band, and the amount of money he receives from the use of the name New Order by his former colleagues since 2011.

The Joy Division and New Order names mean a great deal to so many of the fans, and the band felt it important to protect the legacy.

With these issues now dealt with, Bernard, Stephen and Gillian can continue to do what they do best, make music and perform live.