It’s entirely hers! When James Packer proposed to Mariah Carey in March, he famously used a 35-carat diamond engagement ring. Seven months later, the couple has split up, but that doesn’t mean the ring will leave the singer’s hand.
“He’s not going to make her give back the ring because it’s against the law,” a Carey insider told Us Weekly. “The law in California states that she does not have to return the ring because she did not cancel the engagement. She had every intention of marrying him; she had a dress, her daughter had a dress, they were enthusiastic, and they were planning a wedding. On the last day of their Greek holiday, he stated, ‘I can’t take this anymore, this is just too much.'”
In fact, according to the 1950 California case Simonian v. Donoian, “the donee (i.e., the woman) of an engagement ring is entitled to retain possession thereof when the marriage contract is breached by the donor (i.e., the man) without any fault on donee’s part.”
Attorney Stacy D. Phillips elaborated for Us: “If the recipient cancels the wedding, the recipient must return the ring because the ring was a conditional gift — the condition being that the recipient marry the donor.” If the donor breaks it off, the receiver gets to retain the ring. If they decide mutually to cancel the wedding, the receiver must return the ring.
So far, it appears that the second possibility applies to the couple, as Carey is still wearing the ring — but on her right hand. Of course, this doesn’t mean the Grammy-winning musician doesn’t have other issues to deal with, such as where to go next. “Mariah was like, ‘This isn’t how you do it,'” the person explained. “He persuaded her to move to Los Angeles to be closer to him because his ex-wife and children live there. She moved to Los Angeles to be with him. She changed her life, and she enjoys her life in New York.