Breaking Off An Engagment Might Cost You

[maplecookie Veteran]

Men (or women) who decide to get on bended knee: Be warned. You could find yourself on both knees, facing a judge instead of a justice of the peace.

That?s what happened in Florida this week, when a woman was awarded $150,000 after suing her former fianc? for calling off their wedding.

For RoseMary Shell, the jilted bride-to-be who left a high-paying job in Pensacola to live with her prospective partner in Gainesville, there was a ?wow? in lieu of a vow.

? a little bit [surprised], but I was thrilled,? Shell told TODAY?s Meredith Vieira on Friday. ?But I felt like justice was really done.?

For Wayne Gibbs, the ex-fianc?, a case of cold feet came at a price.

?Mr. Gibbs feels that the verdict did not accurately reflect the evidence and will appeal,? Hammond Law, Gibbs? attorney, told TODAY in a statement. ?In addition, there are significant legal questions to address, including, but not limited to, whether or not breach of promise to marry is a viable action under Georgia law in 2008.?

From bliss to diss

It was 2001 when Shell and Gibbs, who were each divorced with grown children, met through mutual friends and began dating.

According to Shell, the couple had intended to get married when her youngest son went off to college in 2005. When that didn?t happen, she broke up with Gibbs and moved to Pensacola, where she landed a human resources job that paid $81,000 with benefits. Trying to carry on with her life, she started to date someone new.

But in October 2006, Gibbs asked her to move back to Gainesville ? and he proposed with a 2-carat diamond ring. Shell said yes. Ag date of Dec. 2 was set.

About a month after Shell moved back in with Gibbs, however, Gibbs expressed second thoughts in a note he left in their bathroom: He wanted to postpone the wedding.

Gibbs and Shell stayed together a few more months before officially parting in March 2007. Shell chose to take legal action and sued three months later.

?Primarily because he made a promise to me and I relied on that promise and gave up a lot of things because of that promise,? Shell explained.

?And I suffered significantly for it,? she added. ?I just felt like people shouldn?t be allowed to do people that way.?

During the three-day trial, Shell testified that she had given up a good salary with benefits to move back with Gibbs. In her current job, in the accounting department at North Georgia College and State University, Shell is making $31,000 a year.

Gibbs testified that he took Shell on several skiing trips during their renewed partnership, made house payments for her, and gave her $30,000 to pay off some of her credit-card debt. He claimed he got cold feet after learning she had even more debt.

Shell disputed that Gibbs was unaware of her overall debt of $42,000. ?It?s simply not true,? Shell told Vieira. ?We discussed my debts before I left Florida. We discussed my debts when I came back from Florida. He had a list. He knew exactly what I owed. That?s all just kind of a smokescreen.?

A precedent?

After hearing the case, a Hall County jury awarded Shell $150,000 on Wednesday.

Lydia Sartain, Shell?s attorney, said her only reservations about taking on the case were over the ?conservative? nature of area residents who might make up the jury.

?We really debated quite extensively whether to bring the case,? Sartain said. ?But we just felt so strongly that in this case he had told her to quit her job and she relied on his promise. He came to her in Florida and moved her back into his house, took steps above and beyond the usual ?Will you marry me, let?s plan a wedding? and then somebody backs out.?

?Really, we believe now that he never intended to follow through on the promise to marry,? Sartain added.

Sartain also told Vieira that she hopes the case sets a precedent that an engagement can be a binding contract: ?When you give your word to do something and you cause people to rely on it to their detriment, then you may be held accountable for any damages that you cause.?

As for her engagement ring, which she displayed to Vieira and TODAY viewers, Shell said she does not know the value ? but she will try to sell it.

?It means nothing now,? she said.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25846393/

Odd that she got so much and still has her engagement ring. If he paid for it he should have gotten it back.

[Budious]

Women are such leeches. Any reason to get money from a man. Figures this would happen in my state. Note to self, use more sarcasm than usual when I do propose.

[maplecookie Veteran]

Wow, such a generalized comment about women isn't very nice. Sorry if you've had a bad experience or something, but not everyone agrees with this.

She should have just moved on. It'll probably be overturned later.

[Deletedforeverhaha]

Ah, isn't it beautiful? Suing the person you want to love because he doubts the relationship... I have to back the woman since she put everything on her fiance and was betrayed.

The man is the reason why people keep saying that chivalry is dead.

Edited July 25, 2008 by masked unknown

[+Mystic MVC]

That is wrong in so many ways. Instead of going through with the wedding and costing thousands (for both sides) he decides to call it off, but still hasn't to pay more than the cost of an actual wedding. Sounds like he should have just divorced her, might have been cheaper. :p

[majortom1981]

You guys do know that he was also cheating on her right? He told her to quit her job and move in and goes to marry her then only leaves her a note and cheats on her?

On the news here in NY it was also stated that he cheated on her.

You cant right away blame the woman in this.

Also what is the amountshe sued for. If She only sued for $150,000 it sounds like she only sued for a year or two salary.

[zeta_immersion]

same **** happened to a girl-friend of mine .. she literally got dumped on the stps of the church when she(the bride at that point in time) found out (right there) that he slept with his secretary at work for about 2 months and to top it off ... he aparently loved her (the secretary) ....

mind you these stupid things (portrayed in the moves are funny) but in real life, this girl is not really messed up per say ... but she lost it completelly ... now ... she talks to me but is nore of a veggie if you know what i mean .....

[maplecookie Veteran]

Break-ups are not easy, especially when you've built your life around that person, but I don't believe suing them before a marriage is right.

After due to cheating is a whole other story

Edited July 25, 2008 by Triliaeris

[+Mystic MVC]

You guys do know that he was also cheating on her right? He told her to quit her job and move in and goes to marry her then only leaves her a note and cheats on her?

On the news here in NY it was also stated that he cheated on her.

You cant right away blame the woman in this.

Also what is the amountshe sued for. If She only sued for $150,000 it sounds like she only sued for a year or two salary.

Only? Wow, so can I ask what your job is, if you are saying only? Even with all the wedding preparations, there is no way they spent that much.

She had a decision whether or not to move back to Florida, blaming him for what happened after seems a bit far fetched. If she cared that much about her new job she would have pushed harder to keep it. She made a wrong decision leaving that job and was kicking herself for it. What else would you do when you are down and out....sue somebody. :rolleyes:

[ahhell]

"Hell has no fury like a woman scorned."

[Tikimotel]

Think before you act.

This should stimulate more thinking...(I hope.)

However a 150.000$ wedding? What are you a Hollywood wannabe? Thinking more is better?

An article in the local papers here, stated that most brides are stressed out during the wedding, over complicate things and totally forget what a wedding is really all about.

[torrentthief]

I'm sorry but they were not married, therefore she shouldnt be entitled to a single penny. A verbal promise is not enough, courts need written evidence. I hate it when courts let jury's decide over things like this, the case should never have gone to court, no law was broken, the courts cant just create laws, thats for the government to do.

Money grabbing *****. Cheating is obviously bad but its still no excuse suing someone who hasn't done anything illegal, she's just as bad as him.

Also i dont agree that in a divorce someone should get half their money, they should get their own money back and their own expenditure taken from it. Like with heather mills mccartney, she should have only got the money for the interviews and things that SHE earnt money from, she shouldnt get ?20m of paul mccartney's money. <snipped>

Edited July 25, 2008 by Persephone

[majortom1981]

So what you guys are saying is that a guy can propose to a woman tell her to quit her job and move in with him . and the guy breaks it off and nothing will happen even though she had a high paying job ? Remember it also came out that he had no intentions of marrying her.

I think she got the right amount $150,000 sound to me about a year or two salary. This article doesnt give all the details like the Salary of her old job , If they had any deposits for the wedding in. Things like that. Dont right away bash the woman when we have next to no info to go on besides this horribly written article.

[Fred Derf Veteran]

He sounds like a user. Good for her on standing up for herself.

The money was not for the cost of the wedding. The money is because he convinced her, under a promise of marriage, to quit her job and move to his state. Without this settlement she would have been screwed.

[_bobcat_ Veteran]

I think this is ridiculous. An engagement is not meant to be a binding contract, that is what the wedding is for. I don't consider it a "promise" either, just an agreement of your intention to marry.

I'm sorry he screwed her over but you don't make huge life changes because someone agreed to marry you. You wait until that person has actually shown they are really committed - which doesn't look the case from their previous history. She's old enough to know that "I love you" or "I'll marry you" are the oldest lines in the book when a guy wants to "get his leg over".

Women are such leeches. Any reason to get money from a man. Figures this would happen in my state. Note to self, use more sarcasm than usual when I do propose.

No.. some women, and there are equal amounts of greedy men who would do the same. Personally I prefer the self respect gained by earning and spending my own money and I find people like this woman quite disgusting.

[torrentthief]

The money was not for the cost of the wedding. The money is because he convinced her, under a promise of marriage, to quit her job and move to his state. Without this settlement she would have been screwed.

It was her own choice though, if they had written an agreement and both signed it then fine, otherwise thats just ludicrous, there is no such law. The woman wasn't forced to leave her job, she did that of her own free will. If the relationship screwed up she knew the risks of that happening like with all couples, therefore he should'nt be liable at all.

[_bobcat_ Veteran]

He sounds like a user. Good for her on standing up for herself.

The money was not for the cost of the wedding. The money is because he convinced her, under a promise of marriage, to quit her job and move to his state. Without this settlement she would have been screwed.

I agree he's an ass, but you only get used if you let someone use you. He had already broken a previous promise to marry her, she should have been more cautious.

[Deletedforeverhaha]

same **** happened to a girl-friend of mine .. she literally got dumped on the stps of the church when she(the bride at that point in time) found out (right there) that he slept with his secretary at work for about 2 months and to top it off ... he aparently loved her (the secretary) ....

mind you these stupid things (portrayed in the moves are funny) but in real life, this girl is not really messed up per say ... but she lost it completelly ... now ... she talks to me but is nore of a veggie if you know what i mean .....

For some reason, that made me laugh because of how stupid the situation is... Amazing.

[Mathachew Veteran]

Silly silly woman... this is why you get married before shacking up, but maybe I'm just too old fashioned (nah, I'm not old fashioned)

[Fred Derf Veteran]

I agree he's an ass, but you only get used if you let someone use you. He had already broken a previous promise to marry her, she should have been more cautious.

I'm not sure that the law should recognize that some verbal contracts are worth more than others.

[maplecookie Veteran]

For some reason, that made me laugh because of how stupid the situation is... Amazing.

Nah, I think you can live together before getting married with no problems. Flish and I did and had an agreement as to who gets what. We both know who will get what furniture and money and so on.

I think with the right people it can work out, I just think these two were totally the wrong people.

I don't think engagements should be used as verbal contracts and I don't think under breaking it, there should be penalties like this.

[Dev Null Zen]

You guys do know that he was also cheating on her right? He told her to quit her job and move in and goes to marry her then only leaves her a note and cheats on her?

On the news here in NY it was also stated that he cheated on her.

You cant right away blame the woman in this.

Also what is the amountshe sued for. If She only sued for $150,000 it sounds like she only sued for a year or two salary.

I don't know where you heard that he had cheated on her, but they never mentioned it when they were interviewed on the Today show. you would think the lawyer and the golddigger would have talked about it then. And really to me, when I saw a picture of this woman, the first thing I thought of was that she should be old enough to know better. It was an off-and-on relationship to begin with, so it turning off again should have been a surprise.

[Vykranth]

I'm not sure that the law should recognize that some verbal contracts are worth more than others.

I doubt that verbal contracts have any legal/binding values. You have to have a physical signed paper

to have a proof before a judge.

[torrentthief]

also if this case doesnt get a retrial i reckon loads of women will sue men for proposing then changing their mind and suing for emotional distress, "i couldn't bare going to work because i was so upset, they then fired me for not going to work for 3 weeks, so i'm suing him for him causing me emotional distress and losing my job". People break up all the time and get engaged and break-up, this is a natural thing, you shouldn't be able to sue over such a thing.

I BET you this WILL happen if this case doesnt get a re-trial and overturned.

I doubt that verbal contracts have any legal/binding values. You have to have a physical signed paper

to have a proof before a judge.

EXACTLY, the judge shouldn't have let this go to court, there needs to be written evidence of such an agreement, a verbal agreement with no audio recording or written evidence of it happening should not be allowed to go to court.

[maplecookie Veteran]

also if this case doesnt get a retrial i reckon loads of women will sue men for proposing then changing their mind and suing for emotional distress, "i couldn't bare going to work because i was so upset, they then fired me for not going to work for 3 weeks, so i'm suing him for him causing me emotional distress and losing my job". People break up all the time and get engaged and break-up, this is a natural thing, you shouldn't be able to sue over such a thing.

I BET you this WILL happen if this case doesnt get a re-trial and overturned.

I do hope that it is overturned. It sets a bad precedent for anyone in a relationship.