Tennessee Family Law Resources

Tennessee family law issues are complicated, and conflicts are common given the emotional stress of these situations. From child custody to divorce, any kind of split in a family can bring emotional stress to everyone involved, which certainly does not make the legal process any easier.

With a Tennessee family law attorney by your side, however, you don’t have to embark on this endeavor on your own. At Cordell & Cordell, we represent men and fathers in family court cases with an aggressive approach that advocates for your rights and your children. Get in touch with our team to see how we can help.

Furthermore, we recommend that you read our articles on divorce and child custody in Tennessee to better understand the process ahead. Educating yourself about the divorce process in Tennessee will enhance your ability to communicate with your divorce lawyer, which is crucial for achieving your goals in Tennessee Family Court.

• Memphis Fathers’ Rights
• Franklin Fathers’ Rights
• Nashville Fathers’ Rights
  

Residency Requirement for Tennessee Divorce

A divorce in Tennessee may be granted if the plaintiff or the defendant has resided in the state of Tennessee for six months preceding the filing of the Complaint.

Related Article: What Is The Residency Requirement For Filing For Divorce?

Tennessee Divorce Process

The divorce process is started by one spouse filing the “Complaint.” The spouse who files the Complaint is called the plaintiff. The other spouse is the defendant.

The Complaint and Summons must be served on the other party. This gives the defendant actual notice that the divorce has been filed. There are several ways to serve your spouse. Your Tennessee family law attorney will explain which method of service is best for you.

The Complaint contains certain statistical information and alleges grounds for divorce. After the defendant is served, the next step is for the defendant to file an answer. The defendant is required to file an answer within 30 days from date of service. The defendant may also file a Counter-Complaint. If a Counter-Complaint is filed, it must also be answered.

Under Tennessee law, if the Complaint alleges fault-based grounds (described below), a temporary mandatory injunction can be issued. The Mandatory Injunction prevents either party from dissipating marital assets, threatening harm to each other, and has provisions dealing with children of divorce. Note: temporary mandatory injunctions are generally filed in all divorce actions, regardless of grounds pled in a case.

At this point in the divorce process, your attorney will discuss the need to issue discovery and/or take depositions. Discovery is composed of interrogatories, which are questions your spouse must answer under oath, and request for production of documents, which requires your spouse to produce certain documents.

Related Article: I’m In A Hurry. How Fast Can I Get Divorced?

Parenting Plan in Tennessee

In Tennessee, a “Permanent Parenting Plan” is required for parents to get divorced. The Permanent Parenting Plan (or PPP) lists the rights and obligations of each parent. The PPP lays out which parent has decision-making authority, which can mean joint decision-making authority or one parent making the decisions.

The PPP lists which parent the children will spend time with on weekdays, weekends, and holidays. It lays out the specifics of how and when the children will be transported, and each parent’s financial obligations. The PPP additionally lists each parent’s rights, which include the right to telephone calls with the children, the rights to medical records, and the right to school records.

Grounds for Divorce in Tennessee

In Tennessee, we have two types of divorces: uncontested (usually irreconcilable differences) and contested (requires proof of grounds for divorce).

With a contested divorce, the parties cannot agree and must go to trial. Under Tennessee law, the grounds for a contested divorce are:

• Adultery
• Habitual drunkenness or abuse of narcotic drugs
• Living apart for two years with no minor children
• Inappropriate marital conduct
• Willful or malicious desertion for one full year without a reasonable cause
• Conviction of a felony
• Pregnancy of the wife by another before the marriage without the husband’s knowledge.
• Refusal to move to Tennessee with your spouse and living apart for two years
• Malicious attempt upon the life of another
• Lack of reconciliation for two years after the entry of a decree of separate maintenance
• Impotency and sterility
• Bigamy
• Abandonment or refusal or neglecting to provide for spouse although able to do so.

In reality, most cases settle and are granted on the grounds of irreconcilable differences. If your case is unlikely to settle, your attorney will talk to you extensively about grounds, burden of proof, and any available defenses.

Additional Divorce Resources You Should Read

• Tennessee Divorce Laws & FAQ
• The No-Fault/Fault-Based Divorce Debate

Tennessee Property Division

Tennessee is an equitable distribution state, which means that once property is classified as marital or separate, the trial court must divide marital property equitably according to the factors listed in T.C.A. § 36-4-121(c).

Equitable division does not always mean equal division of property. In other words, marital property will not always be divided 50/50. Also, equitable division does not mean each party will receive a share of every piece of marital property. Sometimes a court will give an entire asset to one spouse.

A trial court will classify all property as either marital or separate. Property acquired during the marriage is marital property. Separate property, also known as non-marital property, generally consists of all real and personal property owned before the marriage, or acquired by gifts and inheritances.

Under Tennessee law, the following factors are considered by the court in equitably dividing marital property:

• The duration of the marriage
• The age, physical and mental health, vocational skills, employability, earning capacity, estate, financial liabilities, and financial needs of each of the parties
• The tangible or intangible contribution by one party to the education, training, or increased earning power of the other party
• The relative ability of each party for future acquisitions of capital assets and income
• The contribution of each party to the acquisition, preservation, appreciation, depreciation, or dissipation of the marital or separate property, including the contribution of a party to the marriage as homemaker, wage earner, or parent, with the contribution of a party as homemaker or wage earner to be given the same weight if each party has fulfilled its role (who contributed more, who performed the marital role more, and why)
• The value of the separate property of each party
• The estate of each party at the time of the marriage
• The economic circumstances of each party at the time the division of property is to become effective
• The tax consequences for each party, costs associated with the reasonably foreseeable sale of the asset, and other reasonably foreseeable expenses associated with the asset
• The amount of Social Security benefits available to each spouse
• Other factors as necessary to consider the equities between the parties

Under Tennessee law, it is possible for one spouse’s separate property, or the appreciation of that separate property, to become marital property. The income from and appreciation of separate property during the marriage may be classified as marital property if the non-owning spouse proves that both spouses substantially contributed to its preservation and appreciation.

Commingling occurs when separate property is inextricably mingled with marital property or the other spouse’s separate property. If separate property is treated as marital property, a presumption arises that the separate property has been given to the marital estate.

According to the Tennessee Supreme Court, transmutation occurs when “separate property is treated in such a way as to give evidence of an intention that it becomes marital.” Transmutation, commingling, and the appreciation of separate property are complex property division issues that do not arise in every divorce.

Related Article: 10 Quick Property Division Tips

Tennessee Child Custody Laws

One of the most important factors to understand regarding Tennessee child custody laws is the difference between residential custody and legal custody. Residential custody refers to the parent the child lives with more than 50% of the time, while legal custody refers to the right of parents to make decisions regarding the health, education, and welfare of the child.

In Tennessee, both parents have equal custody rights by default unless the court deems an alternative necessary in any particular case. When the court has to decide on a different custody arrangement besides the 50/50 split between the parents, their decision-making process is governed by the best interests of the child.

Regarding legal custody, there are several different versions. Sole custody means that only one parent has decision-making authority over the child’s well-being and general life. In Tennessee specifically, this kind of classification may not be all-encompassing. For example, both parents may have the right to make medical decisions on behalf of the child, but only one may have the right to make decisions about education.

Joint custody is not a modern term with legal application under Tennessee law, but it is still commonly used by judges and lawyers to describe a scenario in which parents share roughly the same amount of time with their children and hold the same amount of authority over them.

In cases of unmarried parents, paternity is not automatically presumed like it would be for a husband. Unmarried fathers may need to legally establish paternity before they can file for any kind of custody. When a child is born to an unwed mother in Tennessee, the mother is presumed to have full custody. The father would have to petition for his share.

Tennessee Child Support

Child support in Tennessee is based on both parent’s income, earnings, and other factors that affect their ability to pay. It functions under the Income Shares Model, which presumes that both parents contribute to the financial support of the child based on their available income.

Several factors determine the precise amount of child support that needs to be paid, including the following.

• The income of each parent: Child support is set proportionally to income, so the less a parent makes, the less child support they will have to pay. The bigger the income disparity, the higher child support will be.
• The amount of parenting time each parent has: When custody is joint or split evenly, child support tends to be at its lowest. In cases of sole custody, child support is at its highest.
• The number of children the parents have together: As the number of children increases, the amount of child support to be paid also increases.

Tennessee has a statutory maximum for child support payments that are directly based on how many children are involved. The maximums are as follows.

• $2,100 per month for one child
• $3,200 per month for two children
• $4,100 per month for three children
• $4,600 per month for four children
• $5,000 per month for five or more children

Tennessee Alimony and Spousal Maintenance

Alimony can only be awarded at the time of divorce. There are four types of alimony in Tennessee:

• Alimony in futuro: usually awarded in long-term marriages and can be awarded until death or remarriage
• Rehabilitative alimony: This is awarded to help a spouse “rehabilitate” him or herself. This often means returning to school or obtaining job skills.
• Transitional alimony: awarded to assist the economically disadvantaged spouse adjust to life after divorce
• Alimony in solido: This is a form of property division. Your attorney will discuss with you the particulars of each type of alimony and whether they apply to your divorce.

Tennessee courts generally state that the two most important considerations in determining alimony are need and ability to pay. Tennessee law lists the following factors for courts to consider:

• The relative earning capacity, obligations, needs, and financial resources of each party, including income from pension, profit-sharing or retirement plans and all other sources;
• The relative education and training of each party, the ability and opportunity of each party to secure such education and training, and the necessity of a party to secure further education and training to improve such party’s earning capacity to a reasonable level;
• The duration of the marriage;
• The age and mental condition of each party;
• The physical condition of each party, including, but not limited to, physical disability or incapacity due to a chronic, debilitating disease;
• The extent to which it would be undesirable for a party to seek employment outside the home because such party will be custodian of a minor child of the marriage;
• The separate assets of each party, both real and personal, tangible and intangible;
• Marital property division;
• The standard of living of the parties established during the marriage;
• The extent to which each party has made such tangible and intangible contributions to the marriage as monetary and homemaker contributions, and tangible and intangible contributions by a party to the education, training or increased earning power of the other party;
• The relative fault (who is more to blame) of the parties in cases where the court, in its discretion, deems it appropriate to do so; and
• Such other factors, including the tax consequences to each party, as are necessary.

Related Article: Will I Have To Pay Alimony?

Why Choose Cordell & Cordell

Cordell & Cordell represents men and fathers in family law courts, which may show bias against men. We take an aggressive approach with professionals in Tennessee who have extensive experience working with local laws regarding child support, custody, and more. With a communicative attorney-client relationship, you can approach your family law case with confidence. Take a look at what some of our previous clients had to say about our services.

“All around he did exceptionally well for me. He got everything I was fighting for, he communicated with me well, and it was just all around a great experience.” – Dale D.

“Communication was really, really, really, good. I appreciated how I was kept informed throughout. They were always checking in on me to see if I had any questions or needed anything. Everything was great.” – Benjamin C.

“My attorneys have been great over the 4 years of my case. The support I have received from the firm over the duration of my case has been outstanding. My attorneys treated me as a person and not just as another case. I felt they were concerned about the issues I was personally facing and that meant a lot to me. Thank you!” – Brian H.

Need Guidance For Your Family Law Issue? Call Cordell & Cordell.

Cordell & Cordell is ready to help you with your Tennessee family law case. This page is a resource and is not to be taken as legal advice. To get started with your case, give us a call at 866-DADS-LAW or fill out our online contact form to schedule an initial consultation.