Legal Question in Civil Litigation in Pennsylvania

Re: Harassment & Dual-Purchased Ring

You asked about harassment regarding an ex-boyfriend.

Mr. Sedaka said it well,"you know that breaking up is hard to to do."

Only advice is to have no further contact with the ex. No phone calls, if he calls hang up. No visits and no letters. If he visits tell him he is not welcome and must leave the premises. If he refuses or shows up again have him arrested for trespassing, or seek a temporary restraining order.

As to the suit. It will be incumbent on him to prove that the ring, or anything else was purchased 50-50 and that he is owed his portion. If there is any sort of writing proving this then he may prevail.

Courts vary as to what their solution would be, often with am engagement ring they will let it lie unless the value exceeds X. In that case they partition the ring, either buy him out or sell it and give him half.

An option that you can exercise ahead of time is to offer to allow him to purchase your portion from you for the amount you originally paid (from your funds). (This assumes you even speak with him which above I told you not to do.) Or, if you do not want the ring you could sell it at a fair price. In this case you would be justified in either keeping half of the amount you sold it for. (This is the generous way.) Or you could keep the full amount that you paid and give him the remainder. This is less generous but reflects the fact that he is the one forcing the sale and he should be the one to bear the burden of loss in value.

In any case, if you need, pretty much any lawyer can handle this matter and close off all the issues with finality.

Regards,

Re: Harassment & Dual-Purchased Ring

I am an attorney here in Armstrong County and I'd be happy to discuss it with you. Feel free to contact me.

In terms of the harassment, you need to keep a log of the calls, contacts, etc. for your records in case anything comes of it. Sometimes, you can have charges filed against someone for this, but it depends on the situation. I'd have to know more.

In terms of the ring, I'd need to know if it's an engagement ring or not, and the details about the purchase.