Oliver/Dawson Saxon (1994-present)

In 1994, Graham Oliver and Steve Dawson, founding members of Saxon, reunited under the name Son of a Bitch (which had been Saxon's own name originally, before they became well known) and released Victim You. They performed under various names such as "SAXON-Son of a Bitch tour" and "SAXON-the early years", before deciding on their current name "Oliver/Dawson Saxon" in 2000. The band has been known by this name ever since, and despite recording other material from 1996 onwards have always relied primarily on Saxon songs during live sets. An attempt to perform under the name "SAXON" alone was prevented by Peter "Biff" Byford, another member of the original band, threatening legal action.[1] In 1997[2], Oliver and Dawson registered "SAXON" as a trademark, and attempted, through their management company, to prevent Byford's band using the name on their promotional material. Byford opposed this registration, but initially the UK Patent Office held that the registration was valid, as Oliver and Dawson (as original members of "Son of a Bitch" in 1978) had equal rights to Byford in the name "SAXON".[1] However, in the High Court, Laddie J overturned the registration, ruling that it had been applied for in bad faith.[3] Oliver and Dawson were thereby prevented from describing themselves simply as "Saxon", and obliged to prominently include the "Oliver/Dawson" element of the name in their advertising material.