Can a Resident of a Different State Sue in Mississippi for Alienation of Affection
My question involves a marriage /divorce in the state of: Florida.
Divorcing wife in Florida. She has an affair (unknown sexual) but lots of phone calls & texts logged to the other guy in Mississippi. She acknowledges him as her boyfriend.
Can I bring an Alienation of Affection suit against the guy in Mississippi if I live / getting divorced in Florida? (In Mississippi)
Thanks in advance.
Re: Married and Live in Florida - Wife Seeing Man in Mississippi=alienation of Affect
AoA is not recognized in Florida, but is in Mississippi.
But you really have to weigh this very carefully. What is it you hope to gain?
Re: Married and Live in Florida - Wife Seeing Man in Mississippi=alienation of Affect
I know. But can the guy in Mississippi be sued (in Mississippi, by me)? All texts/emails to my wife in Florida came from Mississippi.
Recoup heavily contested divorce lawyers fees.
Re: Married and Live in Florida - Wife Seeing Man in Mississippi=alienation of Affect
There is authority that indicates that you can bring a lawsuit for alienation of affection in Mississippi as long as the tort is committed at least in part in that state. See, e.g., Knight v. Woodfield, 50 S.3d 995 (Miss. 2011). There's a question of whether a Mississippi court would apply that precedent to a marriage that existed entirely outside of the state. Discuss the matter with a Mississippi lawyer, and be careful that you don't simply end up racking up additional legal fees.
Re: Married and Live in Florida - Wife Seeing Man in Mississippi=alienation of Affect
I don't understand. Are you saying it is, or is not likely, I can initiate a tort lawsuit in Mississippi if the subject of the lawsuit lives in Mississippi and I / the wife do not?
Per Knight v. Woodfield, A. Mississippi's Long-Arm Statute:
¶ 13. Mississippi's long-arm statute states, in relevant part:
Any nonresident person . . . who shall commit a tort in whole or in part in this state against a resident or nonresident of this state . . . shall by such act or acts be deemed to be doing business in Mississippi and shall thereby be subjected to the jurisdiction of the courts of this state.
So it looks like I can file, living in Florida, in Mississippi, and hold the Mississippi resident to task?
Thanks in advance.
- - - Updated - - -
Sorry, retardation kicked in & I didn't read the post accurately. "There is authority that indicates that you can bring a lawsuit for alienation of affection in..."
Cheers & thanks.
Re: Married and Live in Florida - Wife Seeing Man in Mississippi=alienation of Affect
The situation in the Knight case is the opposite of yours. In the Knight case, the defendant was located outside the state and the plaintiff wanted to sue the defendant, a Louisiana resident, in Mississippi. There, the main issue was whether the out-of-state defendant was subject to personal jurisdiction in the state for the alienation of affection lawsuit. The court said that there was jurisdiction and the lawsuit could proceed.
In your situation, the plaintiff (you) is the out-of-state party wanting to sue a defendant in Mississippi. Here, there is no question that the defendant is subject to personal jurisdiction in Mississippi because he is a resident of that state. So, you certainly may sue him. The issue here is whether you could win. Mr. Knowitall pointed out that one of the other things to come out of the Knight case was that the court said that an alienation of affection lawsuit can succeed if you can show that the defendant committed some part of the tort in Mississippi. The texts and e-mails he sent her originated in Mississippi, so if you can show that the texts and e-mails were part of the alienation of affection, you may succeed.
However, there is an issue here that the Knight case was not called upon to decide: whether Mississippi should render a judgment in an alienation of affection case when the married couple involved were outside the state and their state does not provide such a remedy. If you sue and the defendant raises that isssue, you’ll have to be prepared to argue it.
There is also the issue of damages. Even if you win, it’s possible that court won’t give you a lot of damages for this.
Re: Married and Live in Florida - Wife Seeing Man in Mississippi=alienation of Affect
Excellent answer. I hadn't thought of the reverse issue. Damages: What is fair for significantly negatively impacting a 16-year old's life tracking for the Naval Academy? Or his sister. Or Dad - impacting his work by (wife) walking away financially, impacting his credit report, in turn affecting his job that depends on a clear credit report? Not to mention a minimum of $20K legal fees to date for the divorce. Here is the condensed story of this tool and my wife (soon to be Ex-wife in 30 days):
Mr. A and Mrs. B began communicating circa 2004 (Mrs. B) when Mr. B began deploying overseas. Circa 2005 Mrs. B gave Mr. B permission to have an extramarital sexual affair, “as long as you [Mr. B] do not bring home any physical or emotional baggage”. Mr. A & Mrs. B have continued the relationship through present.
Mr. A has been the cause of every broken relationship Mrs. B has had (Mrs. B). He does not deal well with relationships, and currently has another girlfriend, aside from Mrs. B (Mrs. B). Mrs. B professes to only have a superficial phone call relationship with Mr. A, but her phone records belies this with 2269 minutes / 38 hours talk time / 231 incoming phone calls to Mrs. B from Mr. A / 28 outgoing texts from Mrs. B to Mr. A with 105 Video Calls (or more) between them for the five (5) month period of 11 February - 11 July 2014 (known as ‘the period’). Phone records are being retrieved for 2012 – 2014; and deployment dates from 2004 – 2012 to ascertain the exact extent pre 2014.
All phone calls were from Mr. A to Mrs. B. Mrs. B never made any phone calls to Mr. A, and only texted him, after which she would receive a phone call. Most phone calls were not solicited with a text from Mrs. B. During the work week, Mrs. B would only text Mr. A between 3:00 p.m. and 10:30 p.m. Mr. A would generally call Mrs. B 7:30 a.m. – 8:30 a.m. when she was driving to or just arriving to work; daily at 4:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. when she was leaving work; and between 8:30 p.m. – 10:30 p.m. when Mrs. B was in the marital bed. There are multiple consistent Video Phone calls between Midnight and 1:30 in the mornings after Mr. B arrived at work (he works the midnight - 8:00 am shift). This is an indication of Skype or Facetime video calls, while Mr. B was sleeping in the bed with Mrs. B. Mrs. B would normally text Mr. A, and shortly thereafter receive a phone call. Many calls were 2-4 minutes, with a call back 10 – 15 minutes later, when they did talk privately at length. Mrs. B will use terms of endearment such as “…Baby…” when texting Mr. A.
For the past several years, beginning in 2010, Mrs. B would mark her monthly planners with “My Sat”. While Mrs. B would tell Mr. B and the children she was “going to work” most Saturdays, Mrs. B pay receipts from the past two years show only one day pay for a Saturday at work. Mrs. B attributes all Saturday outings to “Me time” or “window shopping in Foley”. In 2010 Mrs. B had 7 “My Sat” noted (on Saturdays), and another 12 Saturdays noted as 07-2 (pm); in 2011 Mrs. B has 7 “My Sat” recorded, with 9 more Saturdays recorded at work. Generally, when Mr. B was deployed outside the United States, Mrs. B did not record anything in her planners during that time. Mrs. B's debit card records show a gas station purchase (consistent with a fuel purchase) the Friday evening or Saturday morning; and a fast food purchase Saturday’s "work". There were only one debit card purchases in Foley AL during the period, either for gas or food, or any shopping whatsoever.
While Mrs. B resided with her daughter she would visit Mr. A most Sundays, and some Saturdays leaving her house in P/FL to meet halfway between Pascagoula MS and P/FL. Foley AL is approximately halfway between the two. She would leave at approximately 8:00 a.m. and return at 2:00 a.m. It was easier to meet Mr. A halfway between P/FL and Pascagoula.
Mr. A is not known to be married. He reportedly is concurrently dating another girlfriend (Mrs. B). He uses a cellular "drop phone" registered to another male. This is consistent with trying to hide one’s identity. He has multiple cars including a Jeep, some antique cars and a blue show car with the license plate of “XYZ”. He has to explain the meaning of this to others at car shows. He drives what he calls a “Poor man’s truck”.
Mr. A is a bodybuilder. He is the source of Mrs. M Anavar (Oxandrolone) (Felony 3 / Schedule III drug) she uses to loose body fat. She does not work out in or out of a gym. Mr. A bought Mrs. B a Valentine stuffed bear for Valentine’s Day 2015. He dislikes Pantene hair shampoo because it smells like the chemical plant he works in when he hugs Mrs. B. As a result, Mrs. B changed her shampoo to John Frieda. Mr. A hikes curly hair on women. Mrs. B will curl her hair when she goes to meet Mr. A.
When Mrs. B was informed Mr. B intended to file an AoA suit against Mr. A, she immediately sent an email decrying this and threatening to inform Mr. B's work that Mr. B had become unstable, if he 'did not back off'.
I'm not sure this is enough. What do you think? Thanks!
Re: Married and Live in Florida - Wife Seeing Man in Mississippi=alienation of Affect
I think you're going to bury yourself in a whole boatload of misery, and legal expenses.
Is it really worth it?