Long after the heartbreak has healed, one nagging question often remains: Who gets to keep the ring?

The engagement is over. In addition to the sorrow, the heartbroken must deal with the return of the deposits left with the caterer, the florist, and the dressmaker. But when all that dust has cleared, one rankling question often remains: Who gets to keep the ring?

For the answer -- or for vengeance -- many turn to the legal system. State courts around the nation that have considered the ring issue have reached differing conclusions.

Women who want to keep their engagement rings often argue that the condition needed to make the engagement ring a final gift is simply the acceptance of the proposal of marriage, not the completion of the marriage ceremony. That way, if the engagement is broken, the ring remains her property.

But this argument often loses. The majority of courts find that the gift of an engagement ring contains an implied condition of marriage; acceptance of the proposal is not the underlying "deal." Absent some other understanding -- say, that the ring is merely a memento of a great trip to Hawaii -- most courts look at engagement rings as conditional gifts given in contemplation of marriage: "Once it is established the ring is an engagement ring, it is a conditional gift."