Her fiancé died months before the wedding. Now she's out $16,000 and the venue is suing her

The venue owners disagree, though, and they’ve filed a countersuit claiming not only that they don’t have to return the funds, but also that the fiancée breached her contract by not paying the remaining balance.

The venue says she owes because the contract states that any funds paid will be forfeited if the booking is canceled. And it wants damages for the alleged breach.

Lawyers say a death doesn’t mean a contract isn’t enforceable

The outcome of this dispute is unknown, and the conflict will likely be resolved either through a civil court decision or an out-of-court settlement.

However, several lawyers weighed in on the laws that would generally apply in these circumstances.

“A groom’s death does not automatically cancel the venue contract, but the venue is not automatically entitled to keep the entire deposit or collect the remaining balance either,” Casey Glasser, a California attorney and the founder of Foundwell Legal, told Moneywise. “The answer depends on the contract, applicable state law and whether the death provides a legal basis to excuse performance.”

Glasser explained that the couple could potentially argue “frustration of purpose,” since “the venue was booked for their wedding, and the groom’s death defeats that central purpose.” However, she said that “whether it succeeds depends in part on whether the contract allocated the risk of that event to the couple.”

Barry E. Janay, owner of The Law Office of Barry E. Janay, P.C., also stressed the importance of reviewing the contract, telling Moneywise, “You would have to look closely at the cancellation policy and any liquidated damages provision.”

As Janay explained, “The venue has a legitimate interest in making sure that the space can be occupied for the highest value, and therefore they wouldn’t likely allow a last-minute cancellation with a full refund under almost any circumstances, even including the death of a spouse.”

However, Janay says there’s a catch: The venue must try to mitigate its damages or minimize its losses. If it can rebook, for example, the venue may be able to collect money from the grieving fiancée only if the new booking brings in less money than the wedding would have. The venue can only recover for actual financial harm.

Unfortunately, if cutting its losses isn’t possible and the surviving bride signed the contract making her responsible for the full balance even after a cancellation, she likely has to pay up. The best way to prevent that would have been to address the issue in advance.