I am planning on proposing to my girlfriend around Christmas time. Mostly likely it will be within the first couple weeks before Christmas. I understand that the ring should not be considered a Christmas present. That would be a very cheap way to start off our lives together if I was already trying to kill two birds with one stone.
With all of that being said, what would be a good gift to get her for Christmas? Is there something that either goes nicely with the ring, or something that is a good gift for new couple to get each other? Please Help!
Thank you!
Re: Christmas Ring
Not to be a total bummer but....
Legally, if it is a Christmas gift and she breaks off the engagement, it is much harder for OP to get the ring back unless she voluntarily gives it back to him(her?). But, if it is explicitly an engagement ring that is not given on Christmas, and the contract implied (that she will marry OP) is not fulfilled, then OP has a tighter legal claim to the ring, and more opportunity for recourse.
(States are handling this differently, some take the no-fault approach which means the giver automatically gets the ring back, but linking the ring to Christmas just makes it all a bit messier.)
My grandma told me that my uncle was going to marry a woman before he met my aunt. My grandma did not like this woman... I guess she smoked and didn't want kids, and wasn't that nice, while my uncle did not smoke and wanted kids. Anyway, If I'm remembering the story correctly, he was going to give the ring as a birthday or Christmas gift I think, but my grandma convinced him not to, and to just give it on a different date. And then the woman broke off the engagement/ relationship and she wanted to keep the ring, and said "it was a gift! You can't have it back!" and he said, no, it was a contract that you didn't fulfill... and got it back. I think he sent her legal precedents to show that it would be hard for her to win. Yeah. That's my family
Also, good luck OP! I hope you know that this was just an aside, and I don't want you to think that I think your relationship will probably fail. I'm sure it will be a lovely engagement, and any type of Christmas gift you give will be great!
I'd recommend getting her something non-wedding related though. Weddings are awesome, but it's not her life. Get her something related to a hobby of hers, wine, books, dvds, crafting supplies, gift cards, etc.
No it's not. An engagement ring is always a conditional gift, regardless of the circumstances. If the condition is not met (if they don't get married), the gifter is legally entitled to the ring. Just because the proposal takes place on Christmas, the nature of the conditional gift doesn't change.
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Oh wow, it looks like you're right. Sorry! My family law professor just went by general rules, and I didn't really look into it much. But now I see there was a 2001 New York case where the ring was seen as a non-conditional gift because it was given at Christmas (Marshall v. Cassano). However, it also looks like the court considered the fact that he broke off the engagement - so basically, if he had allowed the condition to take place (the wedding), it would have.
Sorry. This is probably not at all interesting to anyone else. I kind of wish I still had my Westlaw access, though. I can't find the actual decision online. Good god, I am such a nerd.
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