A man has sued his ex-fiance for the return of a $70,000 engagement ring after ending their relationship over suspected cheating. The former couple has been entangled in a legal battle in Massachusetts court since 2018, with their most recent hearing taking place on Friday. Bruce Johnson and Caroline Settino were briefly engaged in 2017, and Johnson proposed with a Tiffany engagement ring worth over $70,000, according to court documents.

The relationship ended when Johnson accused Settino of being verbally abusive and engaging in an affair, per CBS News. Johnson claimed to have found a message between Settino and a man stating, 'My Bruce is going to be in Connecticut for three days. I need some playtime,' as reported by CBS News. Settino denied these accusations, asserting that the man she was texting was an old friend, according to Reuters. Johnson took Settino to court, arguing that the Tiffany ring rightfully belonged to him.

Settino contended that there was no affair, and the judge initially ruled in her favor, stating that Johnson was at fault for calling off the engagement and that Settino could keep the ring, per CBS News. Despite this ruling, Johnson quickly appealed the decision. In 2023, a Massachusetts Appeals Court ruled in Johnson's favor, stating that the potential existence of the affair was not the sole reason for their decision. The court noted, 'Sometimes there simply is no fault to be had.'

The appeals court indicated that the Supreme Judicial Court would need to determine if Massachusetts should follow the laws of other states where the ring is returned to the giver when a wedding is called off. Settino then appealed to the state high court, seeking to retain the ring on principle, stating, 'I won't wear that ring ever again,' according to Reuters. On Friday, the Massachusetts Supreme Court conducted the couple's latest hearing.

Johnson's attorney, Stephanie Taverna Siden, requested a reversal of the trial court decision and sought to change Massachusetts law regarding engagement rings after a breakup. In Massachusetts, an engagement ring must be given back to the giver if they are 'without fault.' However, many other states, including New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania, consider the ring a gift that needs to be returned at the end of an engagement regardless of fault.

Settino criticized the law's archaic nature, asserting, 'The ring is contingent on, 'You're with me, and as long as you're with me, you're mine.' Johnson is urging the state to adopt the no-fault approach followed by other states. There are no updates on the Friday hearing, but the ring remains in escrow as the legal battle continues. The U.S. Sun has contacted the Supreme Judicial Court Clerk's Office for an update.

'My Bruce is going to be in Connecticut for three days. I need some playtime,'

'I won't wear that ring ever again,'

'The ring is contingent on, 'You're with me, and as long as you're with me, you're mine.'

'Sometimes there simply is no fault to be had.'