Also known as: marriage promises · promise of marriage · promises of marriage · promise to marry · engagement promise
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
2 senses
A contractual undertaking within the statute of frauds when marriage or a promise to marry supplies all or part of the consideration for the promise. The requirement applies to third-party inducements such as offers of property or employment conditioned on the marriage and does not extend to mutual promises exchanged solely between the two persons who intend to marry each other.
A contractual undertaking within the statute of frauds when marriage or a promise to marry supplies all or part of the consideration for the promise. The requirement applies to third-party inducements such as offers of property or employment conditioned on the marriage and does not extend to mutual promises exchanged solely between the two persons who intend to marry each other.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
A promise to marry that historically supported a heartbalm action for breach. Where the action survives, recovery is limited to actual expenditures made in preparation for the wedding together with damages for mental anguish, reputational harm, and injury to health. Expected financial or social advantages from the marriage itself remain unrecoverable.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
A promise to marry that historically supported a heartbalm action for breach. Where the action survives, recovery is limited to actual expenditures made in preparation for the wedding together with damages for mental anguish, reputational harm, and injury to health. Expected financial or social advantages from the marriage itself remain unrecoverable.
Each sense below has its own examples, sources, and questions.
Madison Meyers orally promised her lead engineer Marcus Mitchell a ten-percent equity interest if he married her daughter. Marcus married the daughter in reliance on the statement. When Madison refused to transfer the shares, Marcus sued to enforce the oral promise. The court held the promise unenforceable because marriage supplied the consideration and no signed writing existed.
Melanie Morris told seasonal worker Michelle Murphy that she would convey half the farm if Michelle married Melanie's son. Michelle married the son and then demanded the conveyance. Melanie refused, citing the absence of any writing. The court denied specific performance because the promise rested on marriage consideration and therefore required a signed memorandum.
No. When marriage or a promise to marry supplies the consideration, the statute of frauds still requires a signed writing even if the marriage has already occurred. Performance does not satisfy the writing requirement for this category of promise.
Supporting sources
Yes. The statute reaches any promise for which marriage supplies all or part of the consideration, including offers made by parents or employers to induce one person to marry another.
Supporting sources
Maya Malik and Michael Miller became engaged and purchased a home and joint policies. Michael canceled the wedding, claiming infidelity. Maya sued for breach of the marriage promise and sought reimbursement of wedding deposits plus damages for emotional distress. The court permitted recovery of actual preparation costs and reputational harm but barred any claim for lost future financial position.
Marcus Mitchell and Madison Meyers lived together and pooled resources under an oral understanding reached while engaged. After the engagement collapsed, Marcus sought enforcement of the financial arrangement. The court treated the claim as independent of any marriage promise and enforced the agreement to the extent it rested on consideration other than the marriage itself.
Michelle Murphy and Marcus Mitchell created preembryos during their engagement under an agreement addressing disposition if the marriage did not occur. When the engagement ended, Michelle sought implantation over Marcus's objection. The court refused to enforce the agreement because it would compel parenthood against a party's will, treating the underlying marriage promise as unenforceable on public-policy grounds.
Michael Miller announced weeks before the scheduled wedding that he would not marry Melanie Morris. Melanie had already incurred substantial nonrefundable expenses. She sued immediately for breach of the marriage promise rather than waiting until the wedding date. The court recognized the repudiation as an immediate breach allowing recovery of reliance damages.
Recovery is limited to actual expenditures made in preparation for the marriage and to tort-style damages for mental anguish, reputational harm, and injury to health. Expected financial or social benefits from the marriage itself are not recoverable.
Supporting sources
…contract is barred by Civil Code section 43.5, subdivision (d), which provides that "No cause of action arises for ... breach of promise of marriage." This rather strained contention proceeds from the premise that a promise of marriage impliedly includes a promise to support and to pool property acquired after marriage (see Boyd v.…