NASCAR Driver Ordered to Pay $850,000 in Rare Alienation-of-Affection Verdict

LEXINGTON, N.C. — A Davidson County jury has awarded a North Carolina woman $850,002 in a lawsuit accusing a former NASCAR driver of having an affair with her husband that destroyed their marriage, under a rarely-used state law that lets a deserted spouse sue a third party for breaking up a marriage.

Jurors found in favor of Tracey Hughes following a three-day trial in Davidson County Superior Court, awarding $800,000 on her claim of criminal conversation and $50,000 on her claim of alienation of affections against Jennifer Jo Cobb, who competed in NASCAR's Craftsman Truck and ARCA series. Jurors also found Cobb liable for punitive damages on both claims, but set that additional award at $1 each.

North Carolina is one of only six states — along with Hawaii, Mississippi, New Mexico, South Dakota and Utah — that still allows alienation-of-affection lawsuits. Criminal conversation requires proving the defendant had sex with the plaintiff's spouse during the marriage; alienation of affections requires showing the defendant's wrongful, malicious conduct destroyed the couple's love and affection. Claims must be filed within three years of the defendant's last relevant act, and can't be based on conduct occurring after a couple has separated.

Hughes filed the lawsuit in January 2024, stating she and her husband married in 2003 and separated in January 2021. She accused Cobb of carrying on an affair with her husband for several months before the separation, alleging it included phone calls, text messages and in-person meetings both in North Carolina and in other states while Cobb was traveling for racing. Cobb denied the allegations and sought to have the case dismissed in April 2024, arguing the underlying North Carolina law is unconstitutional and that any such challenge should go before a special three-judge panel in Wake County, where facial challenges to state laws are typically heard. Superior Court Judge Eric Morgan rejected both arguments in December 2024, and court-ordered mediation in January 2025 failed to resolve the case before it went to trial, which ran from Sept. 21 to Sept. 24.

Either side may still file post-trial motions, and Cobb retains the right to appeal.

The case is Tracey M. Hughes v. Jennifer Jo Cobb, Davidson County Superior Court case number 24CVS000041-280.