A paramour is a person who is a love or romantic interest of a married person who is engaging in adultery with the paramour. Spouses engaged in adulterous affairs with paramours sometimes give gifts to their paramours, and often spend marital or community property on such gifts. The non-cheating spouse may pursue a reimbursement claim and ask the court to order the spouse who spent marital assets on a paramour to reimburse the marital or community estate—by returning the gift if it retains its value (jewelry) or replacing the funds with the cheating spouse’s separate property funds.

In South Dakota, adultery is defined as a married person having voluntary sexual intercourse with a person other than his or her spouse. It is considered a Class 2 misdemeanor under South Dakota Codified Laws (SDCL) 22-22-1. When it comes to the division of property during a divorce, South Dakota is an equitable distribution state, which means that marital property is divided in a way that is equitable, but not necessarily equal. Under SDCL 25-4-44, if a spouse has dissipated marital assets by giving gifts to a paramour, the court may consider this when dividing the marital estate. The non-cheating spouse may argue that the spending on a paramour was a wasteful dissipation of marital assets and seek reimbursement. The court has the discretion to order the cheating spouse to reimburse the marital estate, either by returning the gift if it retains value or by compensating with separate property funds. However, each case is unique, and the specific circumstances will influence the court's decision.