Court Battle Over $70,000 Tiffany Engagement Ring: Who Gets It?

The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court will decide who keeps a $70,000 Tiffany engagement ring after the groom called off the wedding, suspecting an affair. This case could modernize state laws on engagement rings, which currently might unfairly benefit men. Both parties seek revisions to the rules governing such situations.

Massachusetts' highest court will soon determine who is entitled to a $70,000 Tiffany engagement ring after the would-be groom, Bruce Johnson, called off the wedding and sued his former fiancée, Caroline Settino, to reclaim the ring.

The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court will address whether to modernize the state's engagement ring laws, which critics argue often favor men. Rebecca Tushnet, a Harvard Law School professor, contends that the special legal treatment around engagement rings is rooted in outdated gender biases.

The couple met at a Massachusetts bar, and Johnson proposed in 2017. Johnson later called off the engagement, suspecting an affair, but the court initially ruled he was mistaken and responsible for the breakup. An appeals court reversed that decision, and now both parties seek legal clarity while the ring remains in escrow.

(With inputs from agencies.)