Former Bandmate Sues Sugarland

INPUT { behavior: url(http://www.countryhound.com/FCKeditor/editor/css/behaviors/hiddenfield.htc) ; }INPUT,TEXTAREA,SELECT,.FCK__Anchor,.FCK__PageBreak { behavior: url(http://www.countryhound.com/FCKeditor/editor/css/behaviors/disablehandles.htc) ; }TABLE { behavior: url(http://www.countryhound.com/FCKeditor/editor/css/behaviors/showtableborders.htc) ; }Jennifer Nettles and Kristian Bush are facing a lawsuit from former bandmate, Kristen Hall.  The suit claims that Hall has rights to the band's name and has made contributions to the success of Sugarland. Hall co-wrote songs on the band's debut release, Twice the Speed of Life, which sold more than 2 million copies. Hall parted ways from her bandmates in 2005 to pursue her songwriting career full-time. After her departure, Sugarland went on to produce Enjoy the Ride, which sold more than 2 million copies and garnered several awards and recognitions. Their latest album, Life on the Inside, was released in July 2008 and is currently the number one album in the country. The lawsuit, filed last month in an Atlanta federal court, amounts to $1.5 million and focuses mainly on rights and authorship to the songs co-written and written by Hall. This is not the first lawsuit Sugarland has faced since the band's inception. Hall, Nettles and Bush had two other bandmates prior to their debut: Simone Simonton and Bret Hartley. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported this weekend that Simonton and Hartley settled a lawsuit in early 2005, which was based on claims that the pair had contributed to the success of Twice the Speed of Life. Nettles and Bush are carrying on this fall with their Love on the Inside Tour featuring special guests Kellie Pickler and Ashton Shepherd.