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Hugh Hefner Dumped at Altar: Does Crystal Harris Keep the Ring?

By Cynthia Hsu, Esq. on June 14, 2011 | Last updated on March 21, 2019

Playboy bunny Crystal Harris calls off her wedding to Hugh Hefner. Dumped, yes, but what becomes to Crystal Harris' engagement ring? Does Hefner have a claim to it?

Harris, 25, began dating Hefner, 85, last May, and Hefner proposed to Harris in December, reports the New York Daily News.

Harris and Hefner's relationship overlapped Hefner's relationship with the Shannon twins, according to the New York Daily News.

Hefner proposed to Harris on Christmas Eve by putting a ring into a music box that played a song from "The Little Mermaid," which is Harris' favorite movie, the Daily News reports. Hefner announced the engagement on Twitter, and the wedding was set to take place just days before the engagement was called off this week, according to Reuters.

It's unclear what caused the split, which was first reported by celebrity gossip site TMZ. Apparently, the couple had an argument, which led to Harris moving out of Hefner's playboy mansion.

Hefner posted a comment on Twitter reading, "The wedding is off. Crystal has had a change of heart," reports Reuters.

But, what happens to Harris' bling? It depends on the jurisdiction. Some states see an engagement ring as a conditional gift on the expectation that the wedding will occur. So, if the wedding is called off, the gift is revoked and is given back to the person who bought and gave the ring.

And, some jurisdictions use a fault-based approach in determining who gets the ring. In certain scenarios, the reasons behind the broken engagement may factor into play - so if the receiver of the engagement ring is the one who broke off the engagement for some reason, the ring will go back to the buyer.

Depending on the state law and how California sees engagement rings, what happens to Crystal Harris' engagement ring may be up in the air. So if the reports are true that Crystal Harris called off the wedding, she may have to hand the ring back over to Hef. If he even wants it.

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