I do…I don’t…

Your wedding has been called off…so, what happens to the engagement ring?

The engagement ring is surrounded by beautiful and romantic memories of couples proposing amongst a beautiful backdrop and perhaps flowers and champagne. Unfortunately, things may not work out and your engagement may be called off, so what happens to the engagement ring?

There has been much debate on this issue recently, after an Australian woman listed her $23,600 Tiffany engagement ring for sale on Facebook marketplace after her relationship ended. The public questioned the legality of whether the woman was allowed to sell the jewellery after ending an engagement. Many people remarked whether the woman was legally entitled to sell the ring, or was she required to return the ring to the ex-fiancé. Did the woman do the right thing?

The partner who gifted the ring claims that they should get it back, but the person who received the ring claims that it was a gift, and it belongs to him/her. Who is correct? Well, this depends on whether it was a gift or a conditional gift.

In the case of Papathanasopoulos v Vacopoulos [2007] NSWSC 502, Mr Vacopoulos (Mr V) instituted proceedings in the Local Court to recover an engagement ring or its value from his former fiancée Ms Papathanasopoulos (Ms P). On 6 August 2005, at their engagement party they exchanged rings. The engagement ring which he gave her cost about $15,250. Relations between Mr V and Ms P deteriorated between the end of that party and about 16 August 2005.

Ms P said words to the effect of “the wedding is off, here take the ring, I don’t want it.” Ms P took off the ring and placed it on the table in front of Mr V, to which he responded words to the effect of “I do not want the ring it is a gift for you, you can keep it.” At no time did Mr V attempt to pick up or take the ring.

The Magistrate held that the ring was a conditional gift and given to Ms P in contemplation of marriage. “It is something that was given as a symbol, if nothing else, of the expected ongoing relationship between the parties. If she was rejecting him, then that quite plainly should have been returned.”

The Court referred to and summarised the principles from Cohen v Sellarwhich were as follows:

• If a woman who has received a ring in contemplation of marriage refuses to fulfil the conditions of the gift, she must return it.
• If a man has refused to carry out his promise of marriage, without legal justification, he cannot demand the return of the engagement ring.
• It is irrelevant that the repudiation of the promise may turn out to the advantage of both parties.
• If both parties agree to dissolve the engagement, then in the absence of agreement to the contrary, the engagement ring and like gifts must be returned, by each party, to the other.
• In the event that a woman is subjected to violence or if the man is having an affair, the woman can raise this as a legal justification for her decision to refuse to carry out her promise of marriage.

Mr V was successful in recovering the value of the ring.

The situation is slightly different when parties are married and decide to separate. In this case, the engagement ring forms part of the property pool. There is no onus on the party to return the engagement ring in these circumstances. However, whoever retains the ring, it will form part of their share of the asset pool.

Have you found yourself in this situation? Are you concerned about who is entitled to keep the engagement ring? If you or someone you are close to is in this situation, and you would like to discuss this with one of our Team, please contact Solari and Stock Miranda on 8525 2700 or, click here to request an appointment with one of our experienced Family Law Team.

Article written by Shweta Kumar
Photo by _ drz _ on Unsplash