It’s not uncommon for people to wonder if the fact that a party has been unfaithful during the marriage will make a difference in the outcome of a divorce. Can the “innocent party” be awarded a greater share of the community property? Or, can the spouse’s lover be sued?

The short answer in California to these questions is “No”. It seems, however, that for those people living in a handful of states that the “wronged” spouse can sue for “alienation of affection”.

The December 4, 2006 issue of “Newsweek” magazine has an article called Heartbreak’s Revenge”. To read the article: MSNBC Article The article discusses a North Carolina law which allows “alienation of affection” lawsuits to be filed. A husband learned his wife was having an affair and sued his now ex-wife’s lover and settled for more than $150,000 earlier this year. The article goes on to state that there have been “a series of high-profile judgments in North Carolina.” And, in one instance, a judgment for $2,000,000. Thus, more than 200 of these suits are filed annually in North Carolina.

People getting a divorce in California cannot bring these actions which have been barred for nearly 70 years, since 1939. However, California does have strict breach of fiduciary duty laws and if you can prove your spouse was spending community funds on his or her lover, then you can ask the court to order reimbursement back to the community. However, going after a few thousand dollars of hotel bills is not worth the cost of the attorney’s fees. Going for reimbursement of $100,000 worth of jewelry that he bought her, or for a car that she bought him, is quite another thing altogether.

It appears there are a number of North Carolina law firms who specialize in these kinds of lawsuits. There is also a push in North Carolina to abolish this law which comes down to us from English common law when women were considered to be owned by their husbands. Yet, the right to bring this kind of action still exists in a handful of states: Hawaii; Illinois; Mississippi; New Hampshire; New Mexico; North Carolina; South Dakota and Utah.

For another interesting article on this topic, go to: WRAL.Com.