Man sues ex-wife's lover; wins $750,000 after she cheated on him in 12-year marriage
- Greg Jernigan, the lover of a North Carolina woman, has been ordered to pay $750,000 in damages to the woman's ex-husband
- Robert Kevin Howard, filed a case against his ex-wife's lover, Greg Jernigan, for alienation of affection and criminal conversation
- Robert Kevin Howard and his wife, Julie George Howard, now Julie Kendall George, were married for 12 years and have 2 children together
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In an unexpected twist, a woman’s paramour in North Carolina has been ordered to pay $750,000 in damages to her ex-husband for extra marital affairs.
A Pitt County, N.C., Superior Court judge on Aug. 19, 2019, decided Julie Kendall George's lover, Greg Jernigan, must pay her ex-husband, Robert Kevin Howard for sleeping with his wife.
North Carolina and seven other states still have laws that allow for a scorned spouse to sue their partner’s lover.
According to court record, Howard sued his wife’s lover for alienation of affection and criminal conversation.
These ''heart balm'' or ''homewrecker'' laws, which date to at least the 18th century, allow for someone to sue for damages incurred when a third party breaks up a happy home.
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Howard and Jernigan first met in December 2016, when Jernigan rode in a limo with him to a New Year’s Eve party at a local Hilton hotel.
Howard and his now-ex-wife, Julie George Howard, now Julie Kendall George, were married for 12 years, and they have two children together.
There was some ''genuine love and affection'' between the married couple.
Howard and Julie had been happily married until Julie met Jernigan, then a first-year teacher, in 2016.
The relationship between the two was at first professional before turning more personal.
Romantic gears shifted between Jernigan and Julie around January 2017, and they consummated their relationship around late March or early April that year.
When Howard confronted his wife about the affair in April 2017, she confessed, saying that Jernigan had said all the right things to her and that sex with him was a mistake, according to court documents.
They stayed together until June 23, 2017, and were divorced on Sept. 25, 2018.
Howard filed his lawsuit on Aug. 1, 2017, and Jernigan was served two days later, according to court records.
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The majority of cases like Howard’s are settled, but it depends on a variety of factors as to whether a lawyer will take up a case.
Howard’s attorney, Mills, who declined to reveal her fee in the Howard case, said the average settlement in these cases is about $50,000 to $90,000.
According to Washington Post, Howard’s case, however, wasn’t the highest judgment she has seen. She once saw a judgment of $5.9 million in 2010 for a similar case, she said.
Howard’s attorney disclosed they haven’t tried to execute the judgment for now, but the judgment is valid for 10 years,
She said, if Julie's lover, Jernigan were to come into money or property within that time, the door to collect will be open.
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Meanwhile, owing to reports about a plea for help by veteran actor, Kofi Laing, better known as 'Kohwe', the Minister of Creative Arts and Tourism, Barbara Oteng, has reached out to him.
Speaking on Adom FM, 'Kohwe' bemoaned the worsening condition of veterans despite having worked hard to bring smiles to the faces of many Ghanaians 'Kohw'’ noted the Ghana film industry was not financially rewarding at the time he and his colleagues were very relevant actors.
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Source: YEN.com.gh
