Ex-Amity Affliction Bassist Takes Legal Action Against Vocalist Over Band Trademarks

Last week, Loudwire reported on former Amity Affliction co-founding bassist/vocalist Ahren Stringer claiming that he was “kicked out” of the band (after he was “booted” from their 2024 tour). Now, Stringer has gone one step further by sharing images on social media that indicate that he’s taking legal action against vocalist Joel Birch over the band’s trademarks of “Amity” and “The Amity Affliction.”

What Stringer Posted

Yesterday (Feb. 22), several publications – including Blunt, Rolling Stone Australia and The PRP – wrote about two screenshots regarding the situation.

Per The PRP, Stringer “briefly shared” an image that signifies that he’s “filing an opposition to Birch holding the band’s trademark.” Stringer then made a follow-up post on Instagram Stories that asked: “Who started the band again? You will lose.”

As reported by Rolling Stone Australia:

Documents published online by IP Australia, the federal government agency that administers intellectual property rights and legislation for patents, trademarks, and design rights, reveal both parties are engaged in a tug-of-war over the band’s name and its reproduction on recordings and elsewhere.

Stringer has filed separate trademark applications for “The Amity Affliction” and “Amity Affliction” under Class 41, covering music production, publishing, and entertainment services, and Class 9, covering audio recordings featuring music.

These applications are listed as “under examination”, with final acceptance decisions due by January 10th, 2026.

READ MORE: Amity Affliction Member Responds to Getting Kicked Out of the Band

Likewise, Blunt clarified that Stringer’s “application [for the ‘Amity’ trademark] was accepted for registration on February 3, 2025, but four days later, Joel Birch filed a formal opposition, setting the stage for a legal battle.” They continue: “The opposition process escalated on February 21, 2025, when Birch submitted his Statement of Grounds and Particulars, detailing why he believes the trademark should be denied.”

Understandably, neither Birch nor The Amity Affliction have commented on this latest development on social media.

You can see a join image of Stringer’s “Notice of intention” and follow-up Instagram Stories post below:

 

What Happened Before This

On Feb. 14, The Amity Affliction posted a statement to Facebook and Instagram regarding their separation with Stringer. In it, they state: “We have been choosing to stay silent until now, as we wanted to handle this privately with respect to all involved. Unfortunately, it has become clear to us that this is no longer possible and we owe it to you, our fans, to comment. Ahren will no longer be touring or recording with The Amity Affliction.”

They continued:

We acknowledge that we have all had our fair share of issues over the years. But sadly, over time the relationship between Ahren and the band has completely broken down while he has been dealing with challenging elements of his personal life.

The band have had to cancel tours and pass on many opportunities in hopes of supporting Ahren, but moving forward we find it impossible to continue to tolerate certain behaviours that have been directed at ourselves and those close to us. Ahren has made it very clear on numerous occasions that he does not enjoy or want to continue touring.

Finally, they concluded: “The music we’ve created with Ahren will forever bind us and we are thankful for the good times we had together. We wish Ahren all the best in his personal and professional future. We look forward to seeing you all on tour.”

The following day, Stringer responded on Instagram Stories (per Lambgoat): “Not tryna start anymore shit BUT I have been kicked out of my band. I will NEVER play with The Amity Affliction (who blocked me btw) love you all x.”

Naturally, the news upset countless fans, with many of them declaring (in various ways) that Stringer was The Amity Affliction in terms of making their sound “unique.”

Stringer and Birch’s History in The Amity Affliction

Again, Stringer was a co-founding member of The Amity Affliction. After playing rhythm guitar for a few years, he transitioned into playing bass, and he appeared on every one of their studio EPs and LPs. He also provided clean vocals, whereas Birch (who joined in 2004) provided unclean vocals.

12 Infamous Rock + Metal Legal Battles

Queue “Winners and Losers” by Social Distortion.

Gallery Credit: Taylor Linzinmeir