Suing The Other Cheater: What You Should Know

These lawsuits are are typically filed under a very old common-law tort called alienation of affection (sometimes called a “homewrecker” claim). This lets a spouse sue a third party they claim wrongfully interfered with the marriage and caused the affection between spouses to be lost.

It’s not about suing simply because someone had an affair — the plaintiff must allege that the defendant’s actions directly destroyed love and affection in the marriage. This type of lawsuit dates back to old English common law and was once widespread; it survived in the U.S. only in a handful of states.

It’s only legally possible in a few states

Because most states have abolished alienation of affection suits, you’re hearing about these stories mainly from places where the law still allows them:

✔ North Carolina
✔ South Dakota
✔ Hawaii
✔ Mississippi
✔ New Mexico
✔ Utah

Those are the states (as of 2025) where a spouse — including wives — can sue someone they believe interfered with their marriage.

Outside of these states, a spouse generally cannot sue the “other woman” (or “other man”) just for having an affair.

Recent jury awards — like TikTok star cases with multimillion-dollar verdicts — go viral and get widespread coverage, making the issue feel more common than it statistically is.
People involved in or affected by these lawsuits often share details online, which amplifies attention to these rare lawsuits.
In states like North Carolina, courts see enough of these cases that they’re no longer “once in a lifetime.” That makes it more likely one will hit the news.

IThese reports involve female spouses and female alleged third parties (the lovers).The relationships happened between women and married women’s husbands, so the narrative focuses on “women suing women,” but the same law applies regardless of gender: a spouse can sue whoever they believe wrongfully interfered.

That is, the law doesn’t only let women sue women — it’s that these specific affairs involved women and the other parties happened to also be women.

These laws are relics of a time when spouses were viewed as property, not equal partners. Many states abolished them long ago because they were often abused or didn’t fit modern notions of marriage and personal autonomy. Suing the “other person” can be seen as shifting responsibility away from the unfaithful spouse. So, while the appearance of more suits may reflect media coverage, in legal reality the option to file such a suit is still very limited and circumscribed. These lawsuits fall under an old tort called alienation of affection that still exists in only a few U.S. states. Recent viral cases are drawing attention, but the underlying legal trend isn’t widespread. Women suing other women in those headlines is circumstantial — the law allows any spouse to sue any third party in those states under certain requirements.