Bad Bunny Seeks $465,000 Legal Bill Reimbursement After Winning ‘Un Verano Sin Ti’ Copyright Case

COURTS Bad Bunny Seeks $465,000 Legal Bill Reimbursement After Winning ‘Un Verano Sin Ti’ Copyright Case The Puerto Rican superstar prevailed last month in a lawsuit over “Enséñame a Bailar" from his 2022 album By Charisma Madarang Charisma Madarang Contact Charisma Madarang on X Contact Charisma Madarang by Email View all posts by Charisma Madarang March 24, 2026 Bad Bunny is asking a court to order record label emPawa Africa to pay up $465,612 in legal fees after he triumphed in a copyright case over his Un Verano Sin Ti track “Enséñame a Bailar.” The lawsuit was filed last May by the Nigerian producer Dera (Ezeani Chidera Godfrey), who alleged the song included an uncleared sample of a 2019 track he produced for the artist Joeboy, “Empty My Pocket.” After Godfrey failed to appear at a Feb. 5 discovery hearing and missed a March 6 filing to continue the case, however, the presiding judge dismissed the suit on March 9. The blown deadline and missed hearing came after Godfrey’s lawyers withdrew from the case in January, citing “irreparable differences” over legal strategies (per Billboard ). Godfrey’s label, emPawa Africa, was dismissed as a plaintiff from the case in February for also missing deadlines. In a motion filed on Monday, March 23, and obtained by Rolling Stone , Bad Bunny’s attorneys stated that the case was “meritless from the beginning and should never have been brought.” They argued that “Empawa filed and aggressively litigated it, apparently hoping that Bad Bunny’s wealth, prominence, and desire to avoid attorneys’ fees and bad publicity would enable Empawa to extract an undeserved, multi-million-dollar settlement.” The Puerto Rican artist’s legal team reiterated that the sample was obtained with permission from Lakizo Entertainment, which had distributed the song at one point. His lawyers claimed that when the label was asked to present evidence in the discovery process, emPawa Africa made “frivolous objections,” stalled and delayed, and ultimately,...