A prior
post examined who is entitled to retain an engagement ring when
an engagement is mutually broken. In that instance, the
person who gave the engagement ring as a gift is entitled to
retain it if the marriage does not take place. But what
happens if the engagement isn't mutually broken? An
interesting decision issued by the Court of Common Pleas answers
that very question.
In Walton v. Snow, C.A. No. CPU4-13-000791, Rennie, J.
(March 3, 2014), the Court adopted the "fault
approach." "Under the fault-based analysis, return
of the ring depends on an assessment of who broke the engagement,
which necessarily entails a determination of why that person broke
the engagement." Id. at 10 (citations
omitted). Under the fault approach, the recipient of the ring
may retain it if the marriage does not take place, so long as he or
she is not at fault. Id. at 11. This interesting, and
precedential decision may be read in its entirety here.
