Five states have alienation of affection laws on the books, and North Carolina has been the locale for a couple of cases which resulted in significant punitive damages.

The laws enable a married person to sue an individual who had an extramarital affair with their spouse, resulting in the loss of their spouse's affections. Punitive damages can be awarded, if the plaintiff can convince the judge that the defendant acted with malice to contribute to the loss of affection in marriage.

Recently a NC judge awarded $8.8 million judgment against a man, Francisco Huizar III, a resident of TX, following his 16-month-long affair with a North Carolina woman. Huizar is ordered to pay the woman's estranged husband.

In 2011 Carol Puryear obtained a $30 million judgment in a NC court against her ex-husband's new wife, Betty Devin.


… your cheatin' heart will pine some day,
and crave the love you threw away.
The time will come when you'll be blue.
Your cheatin' heart will tell on you.

- Hank Williams, Sr.