Family Law
What is the Process for Terminating Parental Rights in Tennessee?
If you are a parent, just the thought of having your parental rights terminated could be a frightening thing, but in other cases it could be the first step to a whole new life for a child who has not had the love and care they deserve from their birth parents. Terminating a parent’s rights…
Read More5 Benefits of Divorce Mediation in Tennessee
As we have said so many times, divorce is basically the breaking of a contract. If there were a way to separate the high level of emotion that the divorce transaction stirs up, it would probably be a faster, easier process to work through. But divorce is not just about breaking a contract. Marriage represents…
Read MoreChild Support Enforcement in Tennessee: Liens for Child Support Arrears
There are many ways in which the payment of child support can be enforced, and federal law has created some uniform guidelines for enforcing child support payments. Tennessee’s statutes for child support enforcement can be found here: T.C.A. § 36-5-901, and the Department of Human Services (DHS) is the state agency that is responsible for…
Read MoreShared Parenting in Tennessee Child Custody Cases
Family law evolves and changes as families in the United States evolve and change – albeit at a much slower pace. In the past, judges leaned more toward granting sole custody of the child to the mother and visitation to the father. As times change and the way families are structured with regard to…
Read MoreHaving a Conversation with Your Child’s Teacher about Your Divorce
Telling your child’s teacher that you are going through a divorce might not be high on your list of priorities, but it should be. Whatever happens in your home has an impact on your child. If your family is going through a rough patch, your child may display behavior at school that is inconsistent with…
Read MoreIs Your Former Spouse Unemployed or Under-employed to Avoid Paying Child Support?
The adversarial divorce is over and your former spouse has been ordered to pay child support for the child you have together; however, you believe that they are not making an effort to find a job because they want to avoid paying child support. What can a primary residential parent do when the alternate residential…
Read MoreAlcohol and Drug Abuse Can Affect Alimony Payments in Tennessee
Alimony, sometimes called spousal support, is awarded to a spouse by a judge. Unless you and your spouse have worked out a plan in your Marital Dissolution Agreement, the process of awarding alimony is an entirely subjective one: a judge is not forced to award alimony to anyone. However, if you file under certain grounds,…
Read MoreSubsidized Permanent Guardianship of a Minor in Tennessee
The foster care system can be a challenging and heartbreaking way for a child to grow up. Every day, young people age out of the system – that is, they grow up to the age of majority and are then left to function on their own without a family to support them, nurture them or…
Read MoreThe Future of Sonya McCaul
When David and Kim Hodgins agreed to foster a one-year old Sonya McCaul back in 2005, they could not have known how long she would stay. After all, young Sonya had been brought across state lines from Nebraska by her babysitter, and her father was in and out of jail. But even though the Hodgins…
Read MoreThe Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act and Relocation
Families with children face some different legal challenges, especially when one parent no longer resides in the same state. To help make the process easier for parents and for the courts, Tennessee (along with 48 other states) adopted the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act (UCCJEA), which grants exclusive jurisdiction rights to the home…
Read MoreCollege Funds and Divorce: The 529 Investment Plan
Divorce can often be hardest on your children. When you are drafting your divorce settlement, it is a good idea to provide for your children’s educational future in order to avoid conflict and confusion further down the road. In Tennessee, contributions to a college fund must be specified by a court order and voluntarily agreed…
Read MoreWhat Does “Contempt of Court” Actually Mean?
If you watch police procedurals or legal-based TV shows, you’ve probably heard a judge say “You’re out of order, Counselor” (or something along those lines) and then fine the attorney or the client for being in “contempt.” As a general rule, however, these types of shows don’t get the nuances of legal proceedings right, so…
Read MoreSpousal Support 101: Understanding Alimony in Solido
There are four categories of spousal support in Tennessee; alimony in solido, however, is a bit different from the rest of them. Often called “lump sum” alimony, this form of spousal support is the only one that: Can be paid all at once Can be paired in addition to other forms of alimony Does not…
Read MoreCustodial Interference vs. Denying Visitation Rights
A Tennessee woman made headlines in Arizona recently when she and her daughter were founded at a women’s shelter. The news stories claimed that the daughter was “reunited” with her father, and that he’s pressing charges of custodial interference. Custodial interference falls into the same part of the Tennessee Criminal Code as kidnapping, but they’re…
Read MoreProtecting College Funds From Divorce
Many parents have college funds set up for their children where they contribute money each month to head off the overwhelming costs of college when the day comes. But you may wonder what happens to a college fund upon divorce. Can your spouse cash out your child’s plan early without your consent? College savings plans…
Read MoreDoes Tennessee Examine Religious Preferences in Determining Child Custody?
When couples divorce, it is often due to the normal sources of conflict — money, child rearing, politics, and religion. If you and your spouse disagree over your children’s religious upbringing, a whole host of conflict can erupt. But can a court take religious preferences into account when determining custody? According to a recent article…
Read MorePaternity in Tennessee
Establishing paternity, or identifying the legal father of a child, is very important to all parties involved: the child, the father, and the mother. It can give rights and benefits to all of them. From the father’s point of view, establishing paternity allows him to participate in his child’s life and obtain visitation or custody…
Read MoreA Little Tennessee Nail Salon Called Alimonys
Pretty much everyone in Knoxville is familiar with the University of Tennessee’s former basketball coach Bruce Pearl’s ex-wife opening up a nail salon called “Alimonys” after their divorce. And rightly so, because when a couple is divorcing, the big “A” word is on everyone’s mind. Alimony — how much will I get? How much will…
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