New York case law is clear, ruling in 1971 that an engagement ring “is in the nature of a pledge for the contract of marriage” and the recipient is required “upon demand, to return the ring on the theory that it constituted a conditional gift” (Lowe v. Quinn, 27 NY2d 397).
And, what if the breakup wasn’t mutual or even your idea? Way back in 1992, NY Courts ruled that “whether Defendant was at fault for the breakup of the engagement is wholly irrelevant to his right to recover possession of an engagement ring that he …gave to defendant in contemplation of marriage “(Gagliardo v. Clemente; 180 AD2d 551). So the diamond (or perhaps cubic zirconia!) must be returned!
So, this Valentine’s Day, if the proposal ends with a “yes,” we hope you mean it…. unlike discarded broken pie-crust, a broken engagement means a return of the ring……
We’d like to start off March — Women’s History month — with an appreciation of Kate Stoneman, the first woman to practice law in New York. Kate Stoneman, from a farming family in upstate New York , graduated New York Normal College and taught for forty years…. And Kate was an instrumental member in the…
LLMC-Digital has launched an extensive upgrade to their website recently and many of our members have had questions as to how to navigate to the printing and emailing functions. Here are two short tutorials on exactly how to do that. In a nutshell, you’ll need to set up an account with LLMC once you’ve navigated…
It’s May… a month whose very name suggests possibilities .. and it’s the start of Summer Associates season at law firms in New York… To make full use of NYLI’s resources, we ask our members to give authorization for their Summer Associates to use the firm’s account. Summers can also have their own individual NYLI…
NYLI’s Director of Innovation & Engagement, Ellyssa Valenti Kroski will be presenting the following webinar with special guest NYLI’s Executive Director Lucy Curci-Gonzalez: Learn about the process of legal research in this beginner webinar on law librarianship. This informative session will discuss where to find the law including primary sources such as constitutions, statutes, court…
As NYLI comes to its conclusion of celebrating Women’s History Month, we’d like to focus on a name far from household knowledge… Helen Marot. Any one of her many careers — as a literary editor and author, labor activist, and librarian — is a cause for celebration…. As labor activist, Helen Marot ….investigated child labor…
New York City Bar Association issued its latest opinion regarding Artificial Intelligence, this time focusing on recording client communication. To read NYC Bar Association Opinion 2025-6 regarding the use of artificial intelligence tools to record, transcribe and create summaries of client communication, click here…. Back in 2024, the same Bar Association issued an overview of…
