Adulterous ex-wife entitled to alimony

Monday, Dec. 4, 2000 | 10:54 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- The Nevada Supreme Court has ruled that a Las Vegas woman could not be denied alimony because she had an extramarital affair that led to a divorce.

The court in its unanimous decision said former District Judge Terrance Marren abused his discretion in refusing to grant alimony to the woman.

The woman and her husband had been married for 21 years when he filed for divorce in Las Vegas in 1994. At the time the husband was the catering director for a major hotel-casino, earning at least $75,000 a year. The woman was a high school hall monitor with a salary of about $14,000 a year.

Justice Deborah Agosti, who wrote the decision, said Marren refused the woman's request for alimony because she'd had an extramarital affair and had initiated the separation by leaving the family for another man.

"We hold that when considering an award of alimony, the court may not consider either party's misconduct or fault," Agosti wrote. In this case, the court said, woman was "obviously being punished for her affair."

"Alimony is not a sword to level the wrongdoer," the court said. "Alimony is not a prize to reward virtue. Alimony is financial support paid from one spouse to another whenever justice and equity require it."

The woman was 42 years old at the time of the divorce and her husband was 43. The court said the woman had health problems and was forced to survive on a meager income after enjoying a comfortable lifestyle for more than 20 years.