Our firms deals with all areas of Family and Juvenile Law, including Custody, Divorce, Child Support, Annulment, Separations, Adoptions, Dependency and Neglect, Termination of Parental Rights and Delinquency.

Custody / Divorce

Kids Do Not Cause Divorce

Divorce is a process between the parents, Mom and Dad. However, many children of divorced parents believe they are the reason their parents are getting a divorce. They often blame themselves. They wonder if the parents would be getting a divorce if they had behaved better, gotten better grades, or helped more around the house. This isn't true. The following site is available to help children understand this concept.
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Parenting Plan

Tennessee has developed a parenting plan designed to help divorcing or divorced parents plan for the parenting of their children. Children are not property of a divorce. The parenting plan in conjunction with the mandatory parenting classes are designed to help parents develop the necessary tools and skills to provide a better comfort level for their children. The Parenting Plan recognizes the importance of the parent-child relationship to both parents. In most situations, children do best when they receive the emotional and financial support of both parents. The child's best interest is the focus of the parenting plan and the parenting classes.
As of July 1, 2005, Tennessee requires a new standardized parenting plan on pending as well as new domestic cases involving children. The new plan is to provide continuity between the Tennessee Courts. The form can be obtained or viewed here.
Additional information to help parents develope their parenting plan is available here.

Dependancy and Neglect

Juvenile Courts have exclusive jurisdiction of dependancy and neglect cases. Tennessee has a Handbook for Parents and Guardians in Dependancy and Neglect cases that provides a great deal of information to assist all parties in this type of case. The handbook is located here.

Orders of Protection

Tennessee provides forms to petition for an Order of Protection. These forms may be found here.

Parent Relocations

Beware before you move:

Tennessee has a parental relocation statute, Tenn. Code Ann. §36-6-108. This statute contains several requirements for a parent intending to relocate with his or her child. The statute ( §36-6-108(a)) requires the relocating parent to send a notice to the other parent containing certain specific information. The statute also sets out the right of the non-relocating parent to file a petition opposing the relocation and seeking to alter visitation. Tenn. Code Ann. §36-6-108(b). The court is required to determine whether to permit relocation based on the best interests of the child, if the parents spend 'substantially equal' intervals of time with their child. There is a list of eleven factors to be considered when making a best interests analysis is contained in the statute. See Tenn. Code Ann. §§36-6-108(c)(1) - (11).

Child Support

Tennessee Compilation of Rules and Regulations, Chapter 1240-2-4, eff. Jan. 18, 2005.

Tennessee has devised and adopted new child support guidelines which creates a presumption of the appropriate amount of child support to be paid by one parent to the other, based on an 'income shares' approach. The gross incomes of the parents, adjusted only for self-employment tax and support obligations to other qualified children, are added together to determine the parents' adjusted gross income. The child support guidelines chart is then utilized to determine the basic child support obligation of those parents for the children they have together. The basic child support obligation is then allocated between the parties pro rata, based on their respective incomes. This model takes additional information into consideration, such as other children in the home, and the cost of insurance, work related daycare and some extra curricular activities.
The guidelines are based on the non-residential parent having the child at least 54 days, but not more than 120 days, per year. Variances in the co-parenting time is less or more, the child support obligation will be adjusted to reflect the actual number of days Even if the parents have equal time, the parent with the smaller child support obligation (typically the parent with the lower income) may be deemed the PRP and may receive child support.

For more information about the guidelines, or to access the latest version of the worksheet or child support calculators, go to the following website:
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Responsibility for the Conduct of Minors in Your Home

Though there are circumstances that you may not be civilly liable for providing alcohol to a minor, you may owe a duty of care to protect your underage guests from harm, in spite of the statute (Tenn. Code Ann. § 57-10-101) which states that one who furnishes alcohol cannot, as a matter of law, be a proximate cause of injury to a third person resulting from the consumption of alcohol. The duty of care lies separate and apart from furnishing alcohol. If you knowingly permit and facilitate the consumption of alcohol by minors, an illegal act, you may have a duty to exercise reasonable care to prevent your guests from harming themselves or third persons.

Our firm will be glad to help you devise a will to distribute and protect your property as well as your treasured personal belongings and mementos. Proper preparation before death give one an opportunity to pass on treasured memories of times passed.

Today it is highly recommended that every individual prepare and execute a will that will extend to all of your rights and interest in real and personal property and shall distribute said property and interest consistent with your intentions.
Tennessee recognizes some handwritten wills as a hohgraphic wills. The specific requirements needs for proper execution may vary depending on the applicable law at the time the will was created. The holographic will usually has to be entirely written by the testator (person the will is for) and needs to express the makers testamentary intent. The will also needs to be signed and dated. T.C.A. § 32-1-105, addresses how the identity of the handwriting may be proven.

A trust may be created to protect your property. This is a highly specialized field and requires professional assistance to prepare, execute and administer.