Man wins in court the right to get his wedding ring back for $ 40
'04.09.2018'
Source: New York Post
The man won a five-year lawsuit to return the wedding ring worth $ 40 000 after breaking the relationship with the bride.
54-year-old Rodney Ripley made an offer to 50-year-old Jennifer Rutten on the Brooklyn Bridge 5 December 2011 of the year. He presented her a Takori ring with a diamond in 3 carats.
Ripley from Wisconsin made an offer to Rutten in New York because she was working and living in the metropolis at the time. But the couple broke up in less than a year, and Ripley asked for the ring back.
Having been refused, he sued the ex-bride in the Supreme Court of Manhattan, but Rutten's lawyers found many reasons to keep a terrific ring.
At first, her lawyer, William Costigan, argued that the ring cost less than $ 13 000, which is well below the threshold for a civil court (less than $ 25 000), according to documents from the Manhattan court.
But the receipt filed by Ripley's lawyer, Bruce Connolly, showed that his client paid $ 39 057,10 for the ring and insured him for $ 40 000.
According to New York law, if the marriage fails, the ring must be returned - and the reasons for the breakup are irrelevant, Connolly told The Post.
Rutten also tried to claim that they diverged in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where the couple initially began to meet and, therefore, the laws of New York do not apply there.
Finally, Rutten blamed Ripley for being cruel to her during courtship, but no evidence of this came. In the end, the judge granted the petition Ripley.
“Indisputable facts show that the ring was given in anticipation of marriage, but this marriage did not take place,” Judge Robert Read wrote in the August 28 ruling. "So Ripley has the right to get the ring back."
Rutten has 45 days to return the diamond ring or pay the former $ 39 057,10, the order says.
“We have always believed that the law and the facts are on the client's side,” Connolly said.
