Nicola and Brooklyn Peltz Beckham’s Wedding Lawsuit Drama, Explained

Following Nicola and Brooklyn Peltz Beckham’s wedding in April 2022, the star-studded event has been making headlines for the drama that apparently went down behind the scenes. Months after the extravagant ceremony, rumors swirled in the media that Nicola and mother-in-law Victoria Beckham were in a bitter feud, with The Daily Mail reporting that the two “can’t stand each other and don’t talk” after Nicola decided to wear a Valentino dress instead of one designed by Victoria.

Though Nicola clarified that the decision was made due to the logistics of altering the dress, this set the foundation for the Bridezilla rumors that followed, which are further complicated by the current lawsuit between Nicola’s father, Nelson Peltz, and wedding planners Nicole Braghin and Arianna Grijalba of Plan Design Events.

In December 2022, nearly eight months after the April nuptials, Nelson filed a lawsuit against Braghin and Grijalba on grounds that he did not receive the $159,000 deposit back after the duo were let go nine days into the job, just six weeks shy of the wedding ceremony, as reported by People. Braghin and Grijalba responded to Nelson’s claims with a countersuit that alleges he was a “billionaire bully” (via The Cut) whose family made the wedding-planning process a nightmare.

The entire situation is a bit messy, so read on for a complete breakdown of everything
surrounding the wedding lawsuit.

Related: Victoria Beckham’s Family – Including Brooklyn and Wife Nicola – Support Her at Fashion Show

March 2022: Preston Bailey, Brooklyn and Nicola’s first wedding planner, steps down. Bailey – known for working with high-profile celebrity couples like Serena Williams and Alexis Ohanian and Lebron and Savannah James – stepped down as the head wedding planner on March 1, 2022, per Page Six. Bailey was hired in April 2021 and allegedly stepped down due to scheduling conflicts. “I was overcommitted,” he told the outlet. “I couldn’t deliver to the quality I was used to.”

Six weeks before the wedding ceremony, the Peltz family hired Braghin and Grijalba of Plan Design Events. Nine days after being hired, the pair stepped away from the job. Some outlets, like People and The Mirror, alleged the planning duo were let go, while Nelson’s lawsuit claims that Braghin and Grijalba tapped out because they couldn’t handle the guest list, which totaled over 500 people. After their departure, Brooklyn and Nicola hired Michelle Rago of Michelle Rago Destinations as the third and final wedding planner for the big day.

April 2022: Nicola and Brooklyn say “I do.” After going through three wedding planners, Nicola and Brooklyn tied the knot on April 9, 2022 in the presence of 500 guests at the Peltz Family oceanfront home in Palm Beach, FL, as reported by Town & Country. The occasion was a weekend-long extravaganza, complete with a welcome dinner on Friday, the ceremony on Saturday, and a brunch on Sunday. Vogue was in charge of photographing the posh event, and all appeared to go smoothly, despite the prior bumps.

December 2022: Nelson files a lawsuit against Plan Design Events. By December 2022, the Peltz/Beckham wedding was months in the past, but Nelson had unsettled business surrounding the event and filed a lawsuit against Plan Design Events on Dec. 30, 2022, per Insider. The lawsuit alleges that the parties involved, aka the Peltzes and Plan Design Events (specifically Braghin and Grijalba), had no signed contract documenting and cementing their business together, and because of this, along with planning mishaps, the $159,000 deposit should be returned. In addition, Nelson claimed in the suit that Plan Design Events had ulterior motives during the nine-day planning experience. “For PDE, Peltz had presented them with the opportunity of a lifetime – to have their names associated with the wedding of two world-famous celebrities, which would undoubtedly propel PDE into wedding planning stardom,” Nelson’s lawyer wrote in the filing (via People). “In reality, however, it later became clear that PDE viewed this as an opportunity to take advantage of Peltz by making material misrepresentations on both their website and in person regarding their experience, expertise, and capability of planning the wedding.”

February 2023: Plan Design Events countersues Nelson. In response to Nelson’s lawsuit, Braghin and Grijalba filed a countersuit in February 2023. According to Seventeen, the duo are asking for $50,000 in damages resulting from the lawsuit. The pair allege that throughout the nine days they worked with the Peltz family, they were subjected to 17-hour days to deal with the overwhelming guest list, and additionally, accuse the family of having poor communication, being demanding, and hiding costs (like Nicola’s hair and makeup) from Nelson. Page Six also obtained the court documents linked with the suit that point to a conversation between Nelson and Grijalba, during which he asked her repeatedly, “Are you crying?” after firing her.

As the legal battle between Nelson and Plan Design Events continues, Nicola allegedly has her eyes on redoing her wedding day. A source close to the actor told Closer, “For Nicola, as she approaches the first wedding anniversary, she looks back on the day as stressful from start to finish. The whole thing was a nightmare. She was far from completely happy with the wedding, the build-up with the three different planners, and associates it now with rows, issues and tension between the families.”