Appeal Thrown Out When Wife Failed to Provide Basics

Tennessee case summary on judicial recusal.

Karen Nisenbaum v. Michael Nisenbaum

The wife in this Williamson County, Tennessee, divorce case didn’t like the judge assigned to her case, so she moved to have him recused.  When he denied the motion, acting as her own attorney, she appealed to the Tennessee Court of Appeals.  But to hear the case, the Court of Appeals needed to know what lawyers call a “reason.”

The rule governing such appeals states that the party appealing must provide a copy of the motion, along with all supporting documents, a copy of the lower court’s order or opinion, and any other trial documents that are necessary.  The wife filed none of these things, which made it difficult for the appeals court to figure out why it should order the trial judge off the case.

The appeals court noted that even though a pro se litigant might not have much legal training or familiarity with the legal system, they are still bound by the same rules that parties represented by an attorney need to follow.  In fact, the court pointed out that in cases under the rule regarding recusal, there must be “meticulous compliance” with the rules.

Since the wife didn’t provide this basic information, the Court of Appeals tossed out the appeal.

No. M2021–01377-COA-T10B-CV (Tenn. Ct. App. Dec. 15,  2021).

See original opinion for exact language.  Legal citations omitted.

To learn more, see The Tennessee Divorce Process: How Divorces Work Start to Finish.