Man sues jilted bride for $15,000 engagement ring
Break ups can be messy at the best of times, so what happens when a jilted bride is asked to hand back her $15,500 engagement ring?
That was the situation facing Winnie Chu Ling Su after Edwin Shien Bing Toh called it quits 10 days before they were due to be married.
While Mr Toh didn’t want a wedding, he certainly did want the engagement ring and the two wedding rings worth $1300 back.
When Ms Su said no, Mr Toh sued his ex-fiancee in the Downing Centre Local Court – but he didn’t stop at the jewellery.
The court heard that during the relationship Mr Toh had bought Ms Su an iPhone, a Longines watch, a diamond necklace, a Louis Vuitton handbag and a Samsonite suitcase, totaling about $5000 – and now he wanted them back.
It was noted that when the pair met to discuss their separation Mr Toh suggested “everything that belongs to each party will be returned to each party”.
The court heard that Ms Su agreed and on the basis of the request, she asked him to hand back the shoes she had purchased for him.
Magistrate Rodney Brender said that agreement was likely based on emotion over the situation and not a legally binding oral contract.
Acknowledging that previous precedent may have favoured Mr Toh, Magistrate Brender noted that is no longer guaranteed after “Parliament abolished the right to recover damages for breach of promise to marry”.
“The gift of an engagement ring should be seen as unconditional,” he added.
Ms Su was ordered to hand back the wedding bands as they were “bought in contemplation of marriage”, however Magistrate Brender refused to order her to hand back the engagement ring or any of the other gifts.
Newsbreak - August 21
