A woman has been ordered to stand trial after she allegedly killed her ex-husband by pouring boiling water on him because she thought he was seeing another woman.

39-year-old Jesusa Tatad from San Jose, California was sharing an apartment with her former husband at the time of the attack in November last year.

She allegedly flew into a jealous rage when she thought her former husband, 36-year-old Ronnie Tatad had been sleeping with another woman.

The pair had allegedly argued earlier in the night over the other woman, before Ms Tatad snuck into her ex-husband's room as he slept and doused him in boiling water.

As the victim leapt out of his bed, his ex-wife is alleged to have clubbed him over the head with a baseball bat.

Mr Tatad died two weeks after the incident from the second and third degree burns covering 60 per cent of his body.

Ms Tatad has been ordered to stand trial on charges including murder, aggravated mayhem and torture.

She is expected to argue she wasn't responsible for the attack.

Witnesses have reported the victim as saying his "'fiancé' is really jealous and is after his ex-wife".

The victim also reportedly told police he didn't want his ex-wife arrested.

But the same witnesses also say they victim reacted with horror when his ex-wife tried to approach him.

"Stay away from me! Go away!", he reportedly yelled as the skin began peeling off his hands and he screamed in pain.

Prosecutors will alleged Ms Tatad hadn't been cooking anything before the attack, and therefore boiled the water with the specific intention of throwing it on her ex-husband.

"It wasn't like she was cooking breakfast... she boiled up that pot of water to pour on him," a prosecutor told the court.

Police will also allege the victim positively identified his ex-wife as the attacker before he was placed in an induced coma.

Mr Tatad died two weeks later and never got the chance to give police a full account of the attack.

The case continues.