Maluma’s Lawyers Ready to Fight UK Businessman’s ‘Extortion’ Claims

Colombian Grammy-winning artist Maluma has responded to Richard Caring, owner of SoHo House’s ‘extortion’ claims, through his lawyers.

MALUMA’s lawyer, attorney Richard C Wolfe of Wolfe Law-Miami, claims that Maluma has been “falsely accused” of extorting money for a concert at Caring’s wedding, and “plans to fight” Caring’s “extortion claims aggressively throughout the legal process” to “seek recovery of the $50,000 cancellation fee”.

Caring, the London-based businessman who owns the exclusive members-only SoHo House locations and The Ivy Restaurants, is reported to be suing Maluma for trying to “pull a fast one by trying to get him to pay double the amount they agreed upon” for his wedding party,” according to TMZ.

Caring claimed he hired Maluma (Juan Luis Londono Arias) to perform at his wedding in the Dominican Republic initially penciled in for November 7, 2019 as his bride-to-be was a huge fan. So he booked the grammy-winning star, and agreed to “extravagant demands” that included “5 first-class tickets, 32 coach tickets for his staff, a private plane for the singer, and a fancy hotel – on top of the $500k performance fee”, added TMZ. But, three months before the wedding, Caring had to postpone the wedding to June 2020 in Rome. Caring claimed he contacted Maluma’s team asking about availability and he sent Maluma $375k upfront.

According to TMZ, Maluma’s representatives told Caring he needed $1 million because the wedding interfered with Maluma’s European tour. So Caring decided to ask for his money back instead. As he failed to get it back, Caring is allegedly suing the singer to get his money back plus damages. He claims he has requested the return of the $375,000 down payment several times since 2019 verbally and in writing, and has been refused.

In response, Maluma’s lawyer, attorney Richard C Wolfe of Wolfe Law-Miami, claims that businessman Caring has “falsely accused” the Grammy-Award winning artist of extorting money for a concert at Caring’s wedding, and therefore “plan to fight” Caring’s “extortion claims aggressively throughout the legal process and will seek recovery of the $50,000 cancellation fee”.

The full statement reads:

“Maluma agreed to perform at Richard Caring’s wedding that was originally scheduled for November 7, 2019 in the Dominican Republic. According to this contract, the singer’s $500K performance fee was non-refundable once booked. The contract also contained a $50K penalty for cancelling the performance. Mr. Caring paid Maluma $375K as a deposit.

“Mr. Caring then notified Maluma’s team that the wedding date was cancelled.  Months later, Mr. Caring asked if Maluma would perform at an unspecified date in June 2020, claiming he moved his wedding to Rome, Italy. The parties never reached an agreement for this second performance.  Mr. Caring never paid the cancellation fee and he was not (under the clear terms of the contract that he signed) entitled to a return of the original deposit fee. The emails exchanged further mandated that IF THEY did reach an agreement the parties were to execute a new contract for the proposed performance in Rome…which never occurred.

Wolfe Law-Miami attorney Richard C. Wolfe on behalf of his clients, Latin music superstar Maluma (Juan Luis Londono Arias), and Manager, Walter Kolm, has issued the following statement claiming the lawsuit filed by businessman Richard Caring falsely accused the Grammy-Award winning artist of extorting money for a concert at Caring’s wedding and asserting counter claims against Mr. Caring.

“We believe Mr. Caring simply did not read the contract before venturing off on this frivolous lawsuit because he would know: 1. he is not entitled to any refunds or damages; 2. Maluma never agreed to the June 2020 concert because a second contract was never signed, plus Maluma was unavailable the day of the wedding due to scheduling conflicts with his European Tour; and 3. that he is liable for the $50,000 cancellation fee.

“We plan to fight Mr. Caring’s extortion claims aggressively throughout the legal process and will seek recovery of the $50,000 cancellation fee.”