Venue kept a bride’s $16,000 deposit after her fiancé passed away. Their excuse? She 'never proved' he was gone

People don't want the burden of a legal battle while they're grieving. 25-year-old Diego Hernandez was supposed to get married on November 20, 2026. Months ago, he and his unnamed fiancée paid $15,909 to reserve Posey Meadows, a rustic-chic wedding venue outside of San Marcos, Texas. Unfortunately, Hernandez passed away unexpectedly in late April. The wedding was obviously cancelled, but Julie Kate Campbell, the owner of the venue, refused to return the deposit to the grieving family for two reasons. KSAT 12 reported the story on October 13, and it has had 16,363 views, 163 likes, and 56 comments.

A contract's a contract

When Lucy Hernandez, Diego's mother, and his fiancée reached out to Julie Campbell about the deposit, she gave them two options: "We are open to discussing options such as transferring your booking to a future date or applying the balance toward another type of event when you feel ready." She also said that she would give them a partial refund if someone else rebooked the same date. But Lucy wanted the $15,909 back. In early May, Lucy and Campbell got on a phone call to discuss the deposit. The conversation got tense, and Campbell's answer turned from a "maybe" to a "no." The contract already stated, "In the event of a cancellation, monies paid will be forfeited."

Proof of death

Lucy hired an attorney who sent Posey Meadows a demand letter in late June, but there was no response. By late July, Diego's fiancée filed a lawsuit against the wedding venue. The lawsuit called Posey Meadows' decision to keep the deposit an "unjust and ghoulish windfall built on a young man's death." Posey Meadows denied the allegations and filed a countersuit instead. They claimed the fiancée breached the contract by refusing to pay the rest of the venue fees. Another reason they countersued was that the fiancée and Lucy never proved Diego's death. They never showed Posey Meadows his death certificate.

Moral principles over legal principles

Postponing or canceling a wedding is bound to come with a cost, literally. A 2020 LendingTree survey found that 56% of couples who changed their wedding plans lost an average of $3,320.50. The top three expenses that the couples were not refunded for included the reception venue (45%), the ceremony venue (40%), and the caterer or baker (34%). While it made logical sense why Posey Meadows could not return the full deposit, Lucy asked, "Where are their morals? Where are their moral principles? We don’t have a fight in us. We don’t. We’re emotionally drained. This is just weighing heavily."

Bad press

Viewers condemned the Hays County wedding venue for countersuing the grieving family. @lizzieswar6335 commented, "This is very sad. I do pray for the fiancée and mother. So heartbreaking. I do hope that Posey Meadows loses, and the family gets their money. I assume they will get bad reviews after everyone has seen this news." @trixare4kidstoo wrote, "On one hand, a contract is a contract; this is why you should get cancellation insurance! On the other hand, the wedding venue is going to miss out on so many bookings due to bad press. Shame on them."

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