Dad Continues Child Support for Severely Disabled Daughter Past Age 21
Tennessee child support case summary regarding a severely disabled adult child.
Rochelle Yvonne Lillard v. Robert Walter Lillard
The mother and father in this Davidson County, Tennessee, case were divorced in 1999, when their daughter was almost two years old. The mother was named the primary residential parent, and the father was ordered to pay child support.
When the daughter was in second grade, she was diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and found to have an I.Q. of 51. In 2015, while the daughter was still a minor, the mother requested that the daughter be found to be severely disabled, and that child support should continue past the age of 18. The daughter continued to receive special education services at school, and graduated from high school in 2017.
In 2018, the case was mediated, and the parents agreed to an order finding the daughter to be disabled and requiring the father to pay child support of $468 every two weeks until the daughter reached 21 years old, followed by a payment of retroactive child support of about $10,000.
In 2018, the circuit court named the mother as the daughter’s conservator. In 2019, the mother filed a petition to modify child support to find the daughter to be severely disabled and continue child support past the age of 21. The court granted this motion, and the father appealed to the Tennessee Court of Appeals.
The father first argued that the finding of severe disability was erroneous. Under the Americans with Disabilities Act, child support can continue past the age of 18 in the case of a child who is “handicapped” or “disabled.” But for child support to continue past 21, the court must find that the child is “severely disabled.” The statute does not define that term, but prior court holdings have required an individual assessment of the person’s ability to live independently.
The father noted that the daughter graduated from high school on time and held a part-time job. He pointed out that she could do household tasks such as cleaning, cooking, and caring for her dog.
The mother testified, however, that the daughter did not have a good concept of time, and didn’t know when to wake up to go to work or take her medication. She also testified that the daughter couldn’t count money or distinguish a quarter from a nickel. The mother also testified as to the daughter’s employment history, and how she had lost a number of jobs. Her current job consisted of watering plants at Lowe’s, and made only enough money to pay the cell phone and water bill.
After reviewing all of the evidence, the Court of Appeals agreed with the lower court that the evidence supported a finding of severe disability. The court then turned to the father’s second argument, that there had been no explicit finding as to whether the child support was in the child’s best interest. After reviewing the evidence, the Court of Appeals agreed that it was in the child’s best interest to keep living with the mother and receive child support.
Finally, the father argued that the amount of the award was incorrect. But after reviewing the evidence, particularly the parents’ income, the court agreed that an award of approximately $1,100 per month was appropriate.
For these reasons, the Court of Appeals affirmed the lower court’s ruling in all respects.
No. M2019-02305-COA-R3-CV (Tenn. Ct. App. Mar. 8, 2021).
See original opinion for exact language. Legal citations omitted.
To learn more, see Child Support Laws in Tennessee.
To learn more, see Child Support Modification in Tennessee | How to Modify Child Support.
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.
