The day you got proposed to and became a fiancé may be one of the fondest memories you have of your life. This happy memory may remain intact regardless of whether your marriage ends in divorce. But as you look down at or think of your engagement ring while you sit through your divorce proceedings, you may question whether you can keep this token from this special day after your divorce is finalized. Well, without further ado, please read on to discover who the engagement ring legally belongs to after a divorce and how one of the seasoned Somerset divorce lawyers at the Law Offices of Kisha M. Hebbon, LLC can help you obtain what is rightfully yours.
Firstly, you should know the equitable distribution law applied to New Jersey divorces. This law holds that marital property is supposed to be split up fairly and justly among the couple. Notice that this does not apply to separate property.
That said, an engagement ring is considered to be separate property. But the question lies in whose separate property it is, and therefore who it legally belongs to after a divorce.
Well, an engagement ring is technically a conditional gift. That is, it is conditional on whether the couple follows through on the marriage. So, once vows are exchanged, the receiving spouse owns the engagement ring outright. But if the couple never gets to this point, the granting spouse has the legal right to ask for the engagement ring back.
Since your engagement ring is legally considered your personal property after your divorce, you can virtually do whatever you like with it. Your decision may be based on whether you lean on the side of sentimentality or prefer a financial strategy.
For one, you can simply keep it. But if you find that the ring is serving as a constant reminder that you are no longer married, you may redesign the stone into a different piece of jewelry (i.e., earrings, necklace, bracelet, etc). Or, you may keep it as a family heirloom, in the hope that one day your child can use it to give or receive from their significant other ahead of a happy life together.
But on the other hand, you may, unfortunately, be struggling with finances in the aftermath of your divorce. This may be especially true if you do not have much separate property or did not receive much marital property in your divorce settlement. If this is your case, you may consider selling your engagement ring to recoup its value. Hopefully, this gives you the additional funds you need to continue toward your financial independence, such as investing in your own house, car, education, etc.
For more information on if and when to pursue a divorce, please don’t hesitate to contact one of the competent Somerset County family lawyers from the Law Offices of Kisha M. Hebbon, LLC. We look forward to hearing from you and later on helping you.
