Hoard v. Barrom (Tennessee 2022)
A court is without jurisdiction to modify a support order once a child has emancipated. The state of Tennessee petitioned to modify the father’s support order. The child turned 18 the following month. The trial court modified the order. A year later, the father moved to set aside the order, arguing the trial court had no jurisdiction to modify since the child had turned 18 and graduated from high school before order entry. The court denied the motion to set aside. The father appealed. The appellate court vacated the support order.
Read MoreMarcel v. Marcel (Tennessee 2022)
To calculate child support income for a parent with variable income (wages, bonus, overtime), the trial court should consider income over a period of time which will account for the variable income. In this case, the father worked at a plant and his income varied. He earned wages, bonuses, overtime, and double time. To calculate his income for child support, the trial court used his last four paystubs, which didn’t include any of this income. However, the information on the pay stub indicated that this type of income had been received year-to-date. The mother appealed the child support term of the final order.
Read MoreTaylor v. Taylor (Tennessee 2022)
An order must contain findings of fact to support an upward deviation for extraordinary educational expenses. This award is in addition to presumptive support. The parents had two children. The father’s original support order included an upward deviation for private school tuition. The parties filed numerous post-divorce motions. In the latest action, following a bench trial, the trial court modified support. The final order was then amended. The support amount in the amended order differed from the support amount in attached worksheet, and the father was ordered to “pay per pay period.”
Read MoreGrace v. Grace (Tennessee 2022)
In January 2017, the parties registered a Kentucky decree of divorce in Tennessee. In 2020, the father asked to modify the visitation schedule, and the mother counter-petitioned to modify support. Specific to support, the trial court entered a judgment for arrears due under the Kentucky order from January 2014 – December 2016. It then modified support, effective January 2017. The trial court denied the mother’s request for pre and post judgment interest. The mother appealed the order’s child support provisions. The appellate four affirmed in part and reversed in part.
Read MoreIn re Jonathan S. (Tennessee 2022)
A parent who requests a modification must prove a significant variance exists in the support obligation. When imputing income, the court must consider the statutory factors. The father requested a modification of child support. The trial court found the mother voluntarily underemployed and imputed income to her at the rate of her former job, which was in a different city. The mother appealed.
Read MoreHollis v. Hollis (Tennessee 2022)
The definition of income is broad and all-encompassing. A reasonable necessity standard is applied to child support awards when the parents earn more than $10,000 per month. The parents of two special needs children filed for divorce. The husband, a financial advisor, was the primary source of income for the family. His income included a loan from his employer, which was tied to performance goals. The loan was forgiven as he met the goals. As his income exceeded $10,000 per month, the trial court had to consider the reasonable necessity standard when awarding support above the guidelines. In its final order, the trial court found support should be set above the guideline amount in light of the father’s income and the children’s extensive special needs. Both parents appealed the final order.
Read MoreRobinson v. Robinson (Tennessee 2022)
To find a parent voluntarily unemployed, the court must consider the parent’s choices and the reasonableness of the choices considering a parent’s obligation to support the child. The parents filed for divorce. They owned three Subway stores. Pending the final order, the court ordered that the mother would manage the stores and the father was to find another job. The father failed to find a job, so when calculating child support, the trial court imputed income to him that equaled the income for a Subway store manager. The father appealed, arguing the trial court had to first find him voluntarily unemployed before imputing income.
Read MoreHill v. Hill (Tennessee 2021)
The trial court must follow the required procedure when modifying a child support order. The parents appeared before the court on post-divorce motions. The two children were emancipated at the time of the hearing. Child support was at issue. In an earlier hearing, the father had received custody of the son, and the court hadn’t ordered support. At issue was the father’s income. The father received an inheritance and used the money to pay for the children’s private school tuition. The trial court recognized the inheritance was income to the father but in the final order, the trial court found it would be unjust to count the inheritance as income since the father used it to pay for tuition. The trial court calculated support and entered a judgement in favor of the father for back support.
Read MoreTigart v. Tigart (Tennessee 2021)
A child support order can be modified when there is a significant variance, which means at least a fifteen percent difference in the current support obligation and the proposed support amount. In the original parenting plan, the parents agreed to an upward deviation in child support so the children could enjoy the same lifestyle. The mother filed to modify the parenting plan and for contempt. The father answered and filed a motion to set aside the divorce decree. The trial court denied the father’s motion to set aside but reduced support based on the father’s new amount of parenting time and his additional child. The mother filed a motion to alter or amend the judgment arguing there was no substantial variance in support.
Read MoreAbney v. Pace (Tennessee 2021)
If a parent provides health insurance for a child on top of the court-ordered insurance, the cost must be a reasonable for the parent to receive credit for the premium. In the parent’s divorce decree, the father was ordered to pay support and provide health insurance. The father filed to modify support. The mother answered claiming the father had not provided her with proof of the insurance and she counterclaimed for contempt for failure to pay support.
Read MoreCanzoneri v. Burns (Tennessee 2021)
The Tennessee child support guidelines contain specific factors to consider when declaring parent underemployed. In this modification action, the father was a self-employed landscaper. Citing his education, background, and a booming economy, the trial court found him underemployed and imputed a higher income. Interestingly, his support was reduced because mother’s income had increased. Regardless, the father appealed.
Read MoreChurch v. Jones (Tennessee 2021)
The effective date of a modified order can be set as of the date of the modification petition, the date of the final hearing, or any appropriate date in between. The father filed to modify support based on his reduced income. It took almost four years for this proceeding to end. In the final order, the court reduced support and, applying its discretion, set the effective as the last day of final hearing. The father appealed.
Read MoreState ex rel. Roberts v. Crafton (Tennessee 2021)
A child support order may be void on grounds of public policy if it relieves both parents of their obligation to pay support. The original divorce decree in this case ordered the father to pay half of the children’s private school tuition in lieu of child support. If the children stopped attending private school, then support would be calculated under the guidelines. Subsequently, the case was transferred from Circuit Court to Juvenile Court. The father filed many motions all with the objective of setting aside the tuition provision.
Read MoreMcGrath v. Hester (Tennessee 2021)
A clear and unambiguous provision of an agreed-to parenting plan is enforceable. The parents in this case agreed to a provision in their parenting plan requiring them to each maintain a life insurance policy in the amount of $300,000 for the benefit of their children until completion of the child support obligation. The father, who remarried, passed away. He left a life insurance policy, and the mother filed a complaint requesting a constructive trust for the $300,000.
Read MoreState ex rel. Moody v. Roker (Tennessee 2021)
A ruling in a final order must be supported by findings of fact and conclusions of law. The mother, a Georgia resident, used the child support program to establish paternity and support pursuant to the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act. The father was incarcerated in Tennessee. The father filed numerous pretrial motions. Significant to this appeal, he filed a motion to participate in the hearing and for transportation. The trial court held a hearing, which was attended by the child support attorney.
Read MoreLillard v. Lillard (Tennessee 2021)
Child support can continue for beyond the age of 21 for children who are severely disabled; living under parental supervision, which is in the child’s best interests; and the obligor has the financial ability to pay support. The mother petitioned the court to modify child support and declare the child severely disabled. At hearing, the mother testified as to the daughter’s IQ, diagnosis, and her inability to live independently. The daughter hadn’t been able to hold a job, relied on the mother for transportation, and couldn’t manage money. She feared other people and couldn’t remember to perform basic personal care. The father cited her graduation from high school, ability to perform basic household tasks, and competition of a certificate program as reasons to stop support. The district court granted the mother’s motion and set support.
Read MoreJulie C.W. v. Frank Mitchell W. Jr. (Tennessee 2021)
The trial court has discretion over deviations from presumptive child support. In this divorce proceeding, there was a large income disparity. The father was an extremely high earner. The mother requested an upward deviation in child support. The final decree set support at the presumptive amount and ordered the mother to pay 10 percent of the uncovered medical. The decree acknowledged the father’s agreement to pay for the children’s private school tuition and up to $600 per month for extracurricular activities. The mother appealed.
Read MoreMercer v. Chiarella (Tennessee 2021)
The court of appeals will not consider issues of first impression on appeal. The divorce decree ordered the father pay child support. He filed to modify based on a decrease in his income. The father’s main source of income was interest on loans he made to other people. As the principal balance of the loans decreased, so did the amount of interest the father received. The court entered an order modifying support down based on his 2019 income.
Read MoreBaker v. Baker (Tennessee 2021)
The definition of income for child support doesn’t include alimony paid to a party in the proceeding. Military retired pay is marital property, subject to property distribution and is not income for child support. The parents in this case, who had two children, divorced. The father was active military but had plans to retire. In the final decree, the district court ordered the father to pay alimony until his retirement, at which time the mother would receive her share of the father’ s military retirement directly. The district court didn’t credit the father for either of these payments as part of his income for child support. The father appealed the final divorce decree arguing that the trial court should have credited him for the alimony, the retirement benefits, and health insurance premium.
Read MoreBaxter v. Rowan (Tennessee 2020)
A valid paternity acknowledgement is the equivalent of a paternity order and grants a parent standing to sue for visitation. The father signed a paternity acknowledgement and several years later filed for visitation. The trial court granted the visitation. The mother appealed the final order for several reasons. Relevant to child support, she argued the father didn’t have standing to sue for visitation because the paternity acknowledgement was not a final parentage order.
Read MoreState of Tennessee ex rel. Kimberly C. v. Gordon S. (Tennessee 2020)
A voluntary acknowledgement of paternity (VAP) is a legal finding of paternity but can be set aside for material mistake of fact. The burden of proof is on the parent challenging the VAP. The father signed a VAP knowing that he was not the child’s biological parent. The parents broke up, and the State filed to establish support. The father filed to dismiss the petition, arguing that there was a material mistake of fact and he requested genetic testing. The juvenile court denied the request for genetic testing, declined to set aside the VAP, and ordered support. The father appealed.
Read MoreState ex rel. Gray v. Daugherty (Tennessee 2020)
A motion to alter or amend a judgment must be supported with evidence at trial. The State filed a motion for relief from an arrears judgment alleging that the father had been given credit for a payment made to the mother by an NCP on a different case. At the hearing, the State argued in…
Read MoreSekik v. Abdelnabi (Tennessee 2020)
When evidence supports the determination of a parent’s income, it will not be overturned as an abuse of discretion. In this divorce case, the trial court initially set support in a temporary parenting plan entered in 2012. At the time, the parents had four minor children. In the final decree, entered in 2019, the trial…
Read MoreKnipper v. Enfinger (Tennessee 2020)
When ordering retroactive support, a trial court can deviate from the presumptive support amount but must make the statutorily required findings to support the deviation. The mother appealed a trial court order that denied her request for support retroactive to the child’s birth. The appellate court reversed the trial court’s order and remanded for additional…
Read MoreGriffin v. Griffin (Tennessee 2020)
The trial court’s determination of child support will be reviewed for an abuse of discretion. The father appealed a decree of divorce awarding primary custody of the children to the mother, dividing the marital estate, and calculating support. Specific to support, the father argued the trial court didn’t calculate each parent’s income correctly. The appellate…
Read MoreIn re Easton (Tennessee 2020)
This appeal turns on the procedural differences between an action for dependency/neglect as opposed to an action for a paternity/visitation. The biological father of this child started this action by filing, pro se, a dependency/neglect petition in juvenile court, in which he clearly pled for custody of the child or alternatively, visitation without an obligation…
Read MoreAbraham v. Abraham (Tennessee 2020)
A request for an upward deviation for extracurricular activities is discretionary. A parent must support the request with evidence of the expenses. This post-divorce action came before the court on several grounds. Specific to child support, the mother requested an upward deviation in child support for the children’s extracurricular activities. The trial court denied the…
Read MoreWilder v. Wilder (Tennessee 2020)
An order that doesn’t adjudicate all of the issues before the court is not final and not ready for appeal. The parents in this case filed competing petitions to modify child support for their three children. The father, the payor, requested a downward modification, arguing his income had decreased. The mother requested an upward modification…
Read MoreWright v. Wright (Tennessee 2020)
When imputing income to parents, the court can consider factors including education and the reason for any change in employment. The parents filed for divorce. They had one child. The father had a history of high paying jobs, but was working as a part-time consultant at the time of the trial. The court imputed an…
Read MoreCain-Swope v. Swope (Tennessee 2020)
A parent can request a discretion from the child support obligation for extraordinary educational expenses. The parents divorced, and the mother was ordered to pay support. The parents engaged on ongoing litigation. Specific to this appeal, the mother filed to modify support, requesting a deviation from support since she paid for the child’s private school…
Read MoreKibbe. v. Kibbe (Tennessee 2020)
The court has discretion to craft a child support award that will best support a child with extraordinary medical needs as long as the court considers all available resources. The parents’ initial divorce decree addressed the needs of their special needs child. The mother primarily cared for the child, and the father was granted visitation.…
Read MoreParsons v. Parsons (Tennessee 2019)
A parent must properly plead for a modification otherwise it shouldn’t be considered during a court proceeding. In this post-divorce action, the mother filed for contempt and breach of contract against the father. In their marital dissolution agreement (MDA), the mother was to receive a portion of the father’s supplemental federal retirement benefit. When a…
Read MorePoole v. Kinslow (Tennessee 2019)
If a court finds a parent voluntarily underemployed, it may use the parent’s earning capacity to calculate child support. In this divorce action, the trial court calculated support using the father’s earning capacity. He was self-employed at the time of trial, but he had earned no income. The father appealed. The court of appeals affirmed.
Read MoreSensing v. Sensing (Tennessee 2019)
The parent requesting the child support modification bears the burden of proving a significant variance exists between the existing support amount and the amount based on the parent’s current income. The father filed to modify his child support, and the court denied his petition. He appealed on the basis that the court improperly imputed capital…
Read MoreSchwager v. Messer (Tennessee 2019)
The start date for a modified child support amount is the date that the action as filed. The parents divorced, and in the decree agreed to a downward deviation of support for two years. At that time, they would exchange financial information and recalculate support. Six years later, the mother filed to modify the child…
Read MoreState of Tennessee ex rel. Haynes v. Daugherty
In a contempt proceeding, a court may not impose a cash-only bond. This violates the parent’s constitutional right to pretrial release, equal protection, and due process. In this contempt case, contempt was filed against the father for failure to pay child support, and the trial court set a cash-only bond. The court set bond as…
Read MoreFichtel v. Zirwas (Tennessee 2019)
A bonus payment, structured to benefit a business, may not be income for child support. Depreciation is not necessarily deductible for child support income. The mother, a doctor, filed a petition to relocate the children to Ohio. She had remarried and taken a job with a much lower income. The trial court denied her petition…
Read MoreNeely v. Neely (Tennessee 2019)
A contempt finding has four elements, one of which is a finding that the parent willfully didn’t pay the child support order. A contempt order must specifically address each element. After a series of motions, the chancery court entered an order finding the father in contempt for failure to pay support. The father appealed, arguing…
Read MoreAlexander v. Alexander (Tennessee 2019)
A judgment for child support arrears, which is based on a child support amount different from that shown on the child support worksheet of record, is void. In their divorce, the parents agreed to no child support. In return, the mother was to contribute to a college fund for their children. The trial court adopted…
Read MoreScot v. Scot (Tennessee 2019)
Income for a modification of child support must be based on a parent’s most recent actual income. A father filed to change custody and modify child support accordingly. During the hearing, he testified as to his earnings in 2017 and to what he might earn in 2018. The court calculated child support using his prospective…
Read MoreIn re Makinna B. (Tennessee 2019)
A parent must provide evidence of the cost of work-related childcare in order to get credit for it in a child support calculation. The mother and father had one child, and the mother was the primary residential parent. A few months after entry of the initial order, the father filed for modification, requesting custody of…
Read MoreMitra v. Irigreddy (Tennessee 2019)
Child support arrears should be paid in a timely manner. The court has discretion to craft an appropriate repayment plan. The parents divorced in Texas. The mother was awarded custody of their daughter. Both parents moved frequently, within the United States and to India in the following years, and visitation was an issue. At one…
Read MorePruitt v. Pruitt (Tennessee 2019)
In order for a judgment to be set aside under Rule 60.02, there must be a material mistake of fact. A father who knows he is not a child’s biological parent, yet signs a paternity affidavit and agrees to pay child support in a divorce, is not operating under a mistake of fact. In this…
Read MoreState of Tennessee ex rel. Moore v. Oden (Tennessee 2019)
If a judgment is missing from a record, it can be added later nunc pro tunc as long as the evidence supports that it was properly announced and not entered due to a clerical error. The parents in this case were never married and had one child. An initial support order was set in February…
Read MoreState of Tennessee ex rel. Groesse v. Sumner (Tennessee 2019)
For a contempt finding in a child support case, the parent must willfully not pay the support despite having the ability to pay. The father appealed a finding of contempt against him. The grounds on appeal included: whether the court applied the proper evidentiary standard, the appropriateness of a de novo rehearing, whether the presentation…
Read MoreKendle v. Kendle (Tennessee 2018)
When determining if it can honor a garnishment notice, an employer has no obligation to consider any garnishments already in place with another employer. The father in this case had two employers. His wages from his primary employer were being garnished when the mother served a garnishment on his secondary employer for fees incurred due…
Read MoreMillen v. Hatter (Tennessee 2018)
The Tennessee Department of Human Services (TDHS) issued an administrative order to garnish the father’s bank account for unpaid child support. In response, the father filed a document titled “Opening Complaint Asking for Injunctive Relief and Restitution for Kevin ‘The King’ Millen.” He served the bank and the TDHS Commissioner. TDHS filed a motion to…
Read MoreGordon v. Gordon (Tennessee 2018)
Deviations from presumptive child support must be supported by specific reasons. In this case, the parents agreed to an upward deviation in child support in the initial support order. The deviation was for “the needs of the family, equity of the parties, and best interest of the minor children.” Later, the mother filed a petition…
Read MoreReid v. Reid (Tennessee 2018)
In order to find a parent underemployed for child support purposes, the court must apply a list of factors. A parent who inflates expenses while downplaying income isn’t necessarily underemployed as defined by statute. The father filed a petition to modify his child support, and the mother responded with a counter-petition for modification of custody…
Read MoreContreras v. Contreras (Tennessee 2018)
A parent who fails to provide insurance as ordered may be liable to reimburse the other parent for the costs of premiums. The father appealed a district court order that ruled against the him on a variety of issues. The order entered judgments against him for arrears and for the cost of medical support premiums…
Read MoreWoodard v. Woodard (Tennessee 2018)
Courts have authority to establish support for a special needs child who is over the age of majority at the time of a divorce as long as the child became disabled before reaching the age of majority. However, if the initial order did not address support, it cannot be established later. The mother appealed a…
Read MoreState ex rel. Townsend v. Williamson (Tennessee 2018)
A parent may receive credit against any owed arrears for necessary expenditures, but the suit must be brought within six years of the expense and meet the definition. A parent has an obligation to support a child even in the absence of a valid court order. The father appealed a court order that did not…
Read MoreState ex rel. Lytle v. Webb (Tennessee 2018)
Adequate findings must support the determination of an arrearage amount. The father appealed an order setting arrears. The arrears were determined in a modification order, but the state filed to alter/amend the arrears amount. The court amended the amount, and father filed to set aside this order. He argued that there was no evidence to…
Read MoreState ex rel. Nichols v. Songstad (Tennessee 2018)
Child support cannot be modified without court permission even when the number of children for whom the parent is responsible changes. The parent must file for a modification, provide notice to the other parents, and prove a significant variance. The mother and father were divorced, and the father was ordered to pay support for their…
Read MoreHance v. Hance (Tennessee 2018)
The juvenile court has exclusive original jurisdiction over dependency and neglect proceedings including child support. If there is also an open action in chancery court, the jurisdiction of the chancery court is suspended. The mother and father in this case divorced in chancery court. A few months later, the father filed to modify the parenting…
Read MoreGoodrich v. Goodrich (Tennessee 2018)
For child support purposes, a court can impute income to a parent that is higher than the parent’s actual income. The father appealed the district court order finding him underemployed and imputing income to him. He argued that he had involuntarily left his previous job and could not find an equivalent job. The Court of…
Read MoreSantee v. Santee (Tennessee 2018)
If a court imputes income to a parent for child support, it must make supportive, consistent findings. In this divorce action, the mother didn’t work during the marriage and stayed at home with the children. The trial court imputed the mother to the income of a medical assistant even though mother would have to attend…
Read MoreIn re Michael J. (Tennessee 2018)
A copy of a genetic testing report is not eligible for judicial notice. This case involves a paternity action that was first heard in front of a magistrate, who ordered genetic testing. The results showed a 99.9% probability of paternity, and the magistrate entered an order. The father requested a rehearing before the juvenile court.…
Read MoreIn re Joel B. (Tennessee 2018)
It is appropriate to impute a parent to a higher income for child support when the parent voluntarily takes a lower paying job. The mother, an attorney, appealed the lower court’s order imputing a higher income to her. Mother practiced immigration law Tennessee, but then moved to California where she worked as a paralegal, earning…
Read MoreKanka v. Kanka (Tennessee 2018)
Child support can be based on a parent’s earning capacity if the court finds a parent willfully unemployed. The father appealed the order that found him willfully unemployed and imputed income to him in the amount of his salary from his previous job. The appellate court upheld the decision. When determining if a parent is…
Read MoreIn re Ava B. (Tennessee 2017)
When calculating income for child support, capital losses apply only in the year in which they occurred and cannot be carried over into subsequent years. The father appealed the juvenile court’s calculation of his income. The father’s income varied, so the juvenile court averaged his income for several years. The juvenile court did not give…
Read MoreSpires v. Simpson (Tennessee 2017)
In a wrongful death action, a parent, who seeks recovery for the death of a child yet owes child support for that child, cannot recover any proceeds until satisfaction of the child support arrears. The mother and father in this case married and had a child. The father left when the child was young, but…
Read MoreJohnson v. Dominick (Tennessee 2017)
The Tennessee child support guidelines provide that child support starts at the birth of the child and retroactive support must be set accordingly.* If a court deviates from the guidelines, it must make specific findings regarding the factors set forth in Tenn. Code Ann. § 36-2-311(a)(11)(A)(i-iii). Without these findings, the order is defective. The mother…
Read MoreState ex rel. Schrita O. v. Robert T. (Tennessee 2017)
A mother has standing to bring a paternity action in juvenile court even if the child has a legal guardian. In this case, the grandfather of the child had been his legal guardian since birth. On appeal, the father argued that the court did not have subject matter jurisdiction to decide the claims because mother…
Read MoreScobey v. Scobey (Tennessee 2017)
A parent must present evidence of their most recent actual income when determining income for a child support modification. The father requested a modification of his support and used outdated income information to calculate the new obligation. The trial court denied the modification and the appellate court upheld the decision. The appellate court found the…
Read MoreIn re Grace N. (Tennessee 2017)
This is the second appeal of this case. The parties appealed the child support calculation in the first order and are now appealing the calculation in the amended order. The Mother appeals the trial court’s calculation of the Father’s income with respect to the proceeds of a property sale and barter income, the court’s exclusion…
Read MoreWilliams v. Williams (Tennessee 2017)
Tennessee statutes require that an initial support order contain a judgment for retroactive support or findings to support deviating from the requirement. In this divorce action, the court awarded primary custody of the children to father. The court ordered no current support because mother was receiving social security. Prior to the custody order, the children…
Read MoreIn re Conner F. (Tennessee 2017)
When determining income for child support, the court can consider a parent’s lifestyle if the lifestyle is inconsistent with the amount of income the parent claims. The father appealed the lower court’s income determination. The record showed that he represents his income inconsistently. He made claims of a high yearly income, but provided documents that…
Read MoreSardon v. Sardon (Tennessee 2017)
The Tennessee statutes allow courts to deviate from the presumptive child support amount for the cost of children’s extracurricular activities. The evidence in this case clearly supported the cost of the activities, and the father did not object to the activities other than he felt mother didn’t consult him. The appellate court upheld the trial…
Read MoreState of Tennesse ex rel. Spurlock v. Torres (Tennessee 2017)
A child support order is void if the court did not have personal jurisdiction over the respondent parent. In interstate actions, there are specific requirements for personal jurisdiction over a nonresident parent, one of which is the parent has entered an appearance or filed a responsive document. In this contempt proceeding, the father, a Texas…
Read MoreParrish v. Griggs (Tennessee 2017)
In Tennessee, the obligation to support a child begins at birth unless there is a statutory basis for deviation. The deviation factors revolve around the father not knowing about the child or the possibility of his paternity. The appellate court reviews the support order for an abuse of discretion if appealed. In this case, the…
Read MoreState of Tennessee ex rel. Bass v. Gonzalez-Perez (Tennessee 2017)
Longshore and Harbor Workers’ benefits are exempt from income withholding; however, the receipt of these benefits does not excuse a parent from paying child support. A parent who fails to pay can be found in contempt. In this case, the father suffered a work-related injury and qualified for Longshoreman’s benefits. After the accident, his support…
Read MoreSansom v. Sansom (Tennessee 2017)
The value of a house, given as a one-time gift, should not have been included in this parent’s gross income for child support. The trial court found that the house, under the facts of this case, could only fall into one income category – a gift that could be converted to cash. The trial court added…
Read MoreState ex. rel. Smith v. Thorne (Tennessee 2017)
An appeal of a child support order set in juvenile court must be taken to the circuit court. In this case, the State appealed an order dismissing arrears to the Court of Appeals. The Court of Appeals found it did not have subject matter jurisdiction over the appeal because the order originated from a dependency…
Read MoreNunnally v. Nunnally (Tennessee 2017)
In a child support case, the court must have reliable evidence of income above a parent’s regular wages in order to include it in the income calculation. The trial court in this case calculated the parents’ incomes using only their hourly rates even though they testified to additional monthly income. The appellate court found no…
Read MoreHalim v. El-Alayli (Tennessee 2017)
A parent who requests more than the capped amount of child support must prove by a preponderance of the evidence that the upward deviation is reasonably necessary to support the children. In this modification action, the mother requested child support plus additional amounts for the caretaker for a special needs child, camp, food, utilities, vacation,…
Read MoreMaher v. Woodruff (Tennessee 2017)
To calculate back child support, apply the guidelines that are in effect at the time of the order. The mother in this case appealed an award of retroactive child support and argued the trial court applied the wrong guidelines. Custody of the children changed from mother to father in 1999. The support amount was not…
Read MoreIn re: Jalen O-H (Tennessee 2017)
A court can order retroactive support in different amounts for different periods of time as long as evidence supports the determination. The parents in this case had multiple custody arrangements since the child’s birth. The court reviewed the terms of each custody agreement and the time it was in place, the parents’ incomes during that…
Read MoreState ex. re. Williams v. Woods (Tennessee 2017)
Child support is due to a child’s primary caregiver even if that person is not a parent. However, the caregiver must request support and be a party to the action. In this case, mother petitioned the court for child support as the child’s primary caregiver even though the child lived his step grandparent during the school…
Read MoreBajestani v. Bajestani (Tennessee 2017)
A parent, with a college degree and other qualifications, is considered voluntarily unemployed if the parent is not actively seeking work and income can be imputed to calculate the child support obligation. The mother in this case had a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering and spoke three languages, and the court found she was not…
Read MoreHowell v. Smithwick (Tennessee 2017)
Income withholding is mandatory in child support cases unless the court specifically finds good cause or approves an agreement between the parents for an alternative payment arrangement. In this case, the modified child support order did not provide for income withholding, and the mother appealed. The appellate court found the modified order lacked either requirement…
Read MoreFuller v. Fuller (Tennessee 2016)
Child support income for a self-employed parent should not include reasonable and ordinary business expenses or the value of any asset distributed as marital property. In this case, the father was a self-employed financial planner. The trial court failed to subtract the amount of business expenses from his gross income. The trial court also included…
Read MoreIn re Lucius H. (Tennessee 2016)
The Uniform Commercial Code (UCC), which governs commerical contracts and transactions, does not apply to paternity actions. In this case, the parent admitted paternity, but cited the UCC in support of his argument that he did not agree to the birth of the child and should not be liable for support. Once paternity is established, the…
Read MoreKephart v. Kephart (Tennessee 2016)
If a parent is receiving social security disability, no support is due if the amount of the benefit exceeds the presumed amount of support. The statute does not contemplate that the parent will retain the difference between the presumed amount of support and the social security benefit.
Read MoreState ex. rel. Rogers v. Lewis (Tennessee 2016)
A child support order is void if it relieves a parent from the obligation to support a child. The original child support order in this case approved an agreement of the parties that the father maintain health insurance or pay for future medical expenses. While no current support was ordered, no provision prohibited a future…
Read MoreBrown v. Brown (Tennessee 2016)
In order to find a parent in criminal contempt of court for failure to pay child support, a petitioner must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the parent had the ability to pay the support when it was due and that the failure to pay support was willful. In this case, the Court found that…
Read MoreStack v. Stack (Tennessee 2016)
A Tennessee court may modify another state’s child support order when the order has been registered in Tennessee, the court has personal jurisdiction over the parties, and the parties have provided the issuing state with written consent to Tennessee’s ongoing jurisdiction. In this case, the parties filed a Notice of Filing of Agreed Order with…
Read MoreState v. Waldo (Tennessee 2016)
A parent must have the present ability to pay child support before he or she can be found in civil contempt for non-payment. The future ability to pay is not enough. The contempt order in this case also sentenced the parent to jail but suspended the sentence as long as the parent made a minimum…
Read MoreThayer v. Thayer (Tennessee 2016)
The choice to work a lower paying job may mean the parent is voluntarily underemployed for purposes of child support. The parent’s decision must be reasonable in light of the obligation to support his or her child. The Court may consider these factors: past and present employment, education, training and ability to work, and other…
Read MoreCatalano v. Woodcock (Tennessee 2016)
In a divorce proceeding, the requirements for service by publication must be strictly complied with or any resulting order will be void for a lack of personal jurisdiction, which can include the child support order.
Read MoreState ex rel. Creighton v. Hayner (Tennessee 2016)
A judgment for arrears entered in 2005 was void because of improper service on the non-custodial parent.
Read MoreIn re Gabrielle R. (Tennessee 2016)
A review of the child support amount automatically follows a petition to modify parenting or visitation time and does not require a specific request.
Read MoreMitchell v. Hall (Tennessee 2016)
A modification of a child support amount due to a child reaching the age of majority is not considered a retroactive modification in a strict sense. While the Court must still make factual findings to support the new amount, generally a parent’s duty to support a child ends when a child reaches the age of…
Read MoreTidwell v. Tidwell (Tennessee 2016)
A parent’s failure to raise the issue of voluntary/willful unemployment with respect to the other parent’s income is a waiver of this issue.
Read MoreCook v. Iverson (Tennessee 2015)
The Court must make a specific finding that a parent is voluntarily underemployed or unemployed before imputing income.
Read MoreIn re Andrea R. (Tennessee 2015)
An upward deviation in the child support amount for private school tuition must be supported by a specific finding that the expense is appropriate. This finding must be based on evidence of the financial circumstances of each parent and the child’s lifestyle. In re Andrea R.pdf
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