Hatebreed founding bassist Chris Beattie has filed a lawsuit against his former bandmates, claiming he was wrongfully terminated from the group.
According to Blabbermouth, The lawsuit, filed in Connecticut Superior Court, names front man Jamey Jasta directly and accuses him of financial misconduct, reputational damage, and fabricating the events that led to Beattie’s removal from the band in late 2024.
Beattie alleges within the lawsuit that tensions with Jasta began months before he was let go. According to the filing, Jasta began excluding him from financial and managerial decisions, despite what Beattie describes as a long-standing agreement that the two were equal partners in Hatebreed’s operations and revenue. He claims that merchandise payouts started arriving late and lighter than expected, and that repeated requests for itemised breakdowns of payments were subsequently ignored.
At the core of the suit is a 2015 merchandise agreement between Beattie, Jasta and drummer Matthew Byrne. Under that arrangement, each of the three would receive 25 percent of merch sales, while the remaining two band members would split the leftover quarter. Beattie says that deal was never officially dissolved, but that Jasta and manager Steve Ross, who allegedly controlled the Hatebreed bank account, began limiting visibility and access to earnings.
Things escalated in November 2024 when Beattie was fired after an alleged incident with a Live Nation security guard at the Toyota Oakdale Theater in Connecticut. According to the suit, a guard claimed Beattie harassed her while entering the venue. Beattie denies the accusation, saying he believes he was misidentified and that the incident was used by Jasta as a pretext to remove him. He accuses Jasta of manufacturing a false narrative to convince other members to back the decision.
Beattie, who spent three decades with the band, says the firing had a major impact on his career and mental health. He also claims the band has continued to use his likeness to promote music and merchandise without permission, including on their website and social media channels.
He is now seeking significant compensatory damages from both Hatebreed and Jasta, including for lost income, emotional distress, and the continued commercial use of his image. The lawsuit adds another messy chapter to Hatebreed’s long and otherwise consistent run, and marks a very public fracture in one of hardcore’s most enduring lineups.
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