Different states have different takes on marriage-related issues and Georgia Family Law on engagement rings is an example. The issue revolves around the tragedy of ended engagements and what to do about the engagement rings.

While the most tragic impact of this situation is the emotional breakdown due to public or social shame, the end question is who gets to keep the rings that are sometimes really very expensive?

The heartache and the misery of picking the pieces up and arranging the return of payments made to the caterer, florist, couturier, and other wedding suppliers, the most heartbreaking and controversial of all would be the decision on who has the rights on the engagement rings.

To get back at each other for the big individual slumps they got into, many turn to the legal system. Different
states look at the issue differently. In Georgia, the rings are treated as gifts from donor to donee. To establish the rings as gifts, three things have to be considered: 1) donor’s intent, 2) delivery of the rings, 3) donee’s acceptance. If all these can be established, the decision will be in favour of the donee.

Majority of courts consider the rings as conditional gifts. This means that the gift is still temporarily a property of the donor unless several conditions are met by the donee. A classic analogy is, when a parent gives his kid key to a car. The car will only belong to him entirely if he gets very high grades in school. If he fails, he returns the key.

Many women argue that the acceptance of the proposal that is attached to the ring should be the confirmation of the condition already, but this one usually loses in court.