Phillips v. Ashworth

This is an action for damages for the seduction of plaintiff by defendant. The authority for the suit is section 5602, Code. No such action existed at common law. This provision of law gives a right of action to an “unmarried woman” for her own seduction. The criminal statute, section 5490, Code, likewise makes it a felony to seduce an “unmarried woman.” Plaintiff in this case claims to be an “unmarried woman,” though she had been married, but claims to have been divorced at the time of the alleged seduction.

The question is presented directly by this appeal whether a divorced woman is an…