No Post-Divorce Child Support for Disabled Adult Child
Tennessee child support case summary on post-divorce support for adult child.
Daniel C. Woodard v. Joan N. Woodard
The mother and father in this Cumberland County, Tennessee, case were the parents of a disabled adult daughter who was in need of full-time care. The father was a veterinarian who owned his own practice, and the wife was unable to work outside the home due to the daughter’s need for care. The mother filed for divorce in 2013. The parties were able to agree on most issues, and agreed to mediate issues regarding the daughter’s care. They were divorced in 2014, but much litigation followed. In 2015, the father moved to reduce his spousal support obligation. The wife then asked for permanent child support.
A hearing was held before Judge Larry Michael Warner, and the father testified as to the worsening of his financial situation. The wife testified as to the extensive expenses incurred in caring for the daughter.
The trial court first held that it was without jurisdiction to impose further child support, since the daughter had been an adult since the time of the divorce. It did reduce the father’s spousal support to $3,000 per month. The mother then appealed to the Tennessee Court of Appeals, which turned first to the question of child support.
The appeals court first turned to the relevant Tennessee statute, which allows a court to extend child support in the case of a disabled child, but normally only until the child reaches 21 years of age. There is an exception to this age limit in the case of a severely disabled child living under the care of a parent. But this exception applies only if the severe disability existed at the time of the final decree of divorce.
The wife argued that this exception applied, but the Court of Appeals disagreed. It held that the wording of the statute gave the court jurisdiction to enter the extended child support only as part of the original divorce decree. It held that it did not apply in a case where there was not a support order originally. It therefore agreed with the lower court that there was no jurisdiction to impose child support.
The appeals court then turned to the question of alimony, and noted that to make a modification, there must be a substantial and material change of circumstances, and the change must be justified. After examining the evidence, which included not only the father’s reduced income, but also the mother’s receipt of the marital property award, the appeals court concluded that the lower court’s findings were supported by the evidence.
For these reasons, the Court of Appeals affirmed.
No. E2017-00200-COA-R3-CV (Tenn. Ct. App. July 9, 2018).
See original opinion for exact language. Legal citations omitted.
To learn more, see Child Support Laws in Tennessee.
See also Tennessee Parenting Plans and Child Support Worksheets: Building a Constructive Future for Your Family featuring actual examples of parenting plans and child support worksheets from real cases available on Amazon.com.
