Alienation of affection and criminal conversation are potential legal claims or causes of action against a person who committed adultery with your spouse—the paramour or lover with whom your spouse had an affair. These claims are based on the idea that the person with whom your spouse cheated destroyed or alienated the love and affection in your marriage.

Alienation of affection claims are no longer recognized by courts in most states—but Hawaii, Mississippi, New Mexico, North Carolina, South Dakota, and Utah do recognize such claims. And in some states that do or do not not recognize such claims, the cheated-on spouse may seek an unequal division of the marital estate based on fault in the breakup of the marriage.

The details of alienation of affection laws (sometimes called heart-balm laws) vary from state to state among the states that do recognize such claims.

In Kansas, claims for alienation of affection are not recognized. Kansas, like the majority of states, has abolished this cause of action. Alienation of affection claims were designed to provide a remedy for a spouse who lost the love and affection of their partner due to the actions of a third party. However, Kansas law does not provide a legal basis for suing a third party for their role in the breakdown of a marriage. While some states may allow for an unequal division of the marital estate based on fault in the dissolution of the marriage, Kansas courts generally follow the principle of equitable distribution, which aims to divide marital property fairly, though not necessarily equally, without regard to marital misconduct. It's important to note that equitable distribution in Kansas is based on a set of factors outlined in state law, and fault is not typically one of them.