“Fifty Miles” in TN Parental Relocation Law Means Distance as the Crow Flies, Not Driving Distance

Tennessee child custody case summary on parent relocation.

Stephanie Barrett v. Ronald Killings

Distance is to be measured along the shortest straight line on a horizontal plane, and not along the course of a highway or usual traveled way.

The Tennessee Parental Relocation Statute applies to cases where a parent moves to another state, or “more than fifty miles from the other parent within the state.”  In this Rutherford County, Tennessee, case, the court was called upon to decide the exact meaning of that phrase.  The mother had moved from Murfeesboro to Fayetteville, Tennessee, without complying with the statute.  The father asked to have her held in contempt, since he alleged that this was more than fifty miles.  In support, he showed a Google Map showing that the driving distance was more than 50 miles.

The mother, on the other hand, showed a competing Google map showing that the straight-line distance between the father’s house and hers was only 44.45 miles.

The case was heard by Judge Sheila Calloway, who ruled that even if the distance was slightly less than 50 miles, under the circumstances of the case, the mother should have followed the procedures of the statute.  The mother then appealed to the Tennessee Court of Appeals.  Even though a number of issues were raised, the court turned immediately to the interpretation of the 50-mile requirement.  It noted the “geometric principle that the shortest distance between any two points is a straight line.”  And citing a legal encyclopedia, it stated the general rule that distance is to be measured along the shortest straight line on a horizontal plane, and not along the course of a highway or usual traveled way.

Since the lower court had relied upon the highway distance, its ruling was in error.  Instead, the statute does not apply.

In an attempt to save the lower court’s ruling, the father argued that a change of custody would have been warranted, even if the statute did not apply.  But the appeals court was quick to point out that he hadn’t made that argument in the lower court.  It did note, however, that the father might make a future argument along those lines.

The appeals court declined to award attorney’s fees to either side, but did assess the costs of the appeal against the father.  It reversed the lower court’s decision.

No. M2022-00946-COA-R3-JV (Tenn. Ct. App. Apr. 24, 2023).

See original opinion for exact language.  Legal citations omitted.

To learn more, see Tennessee Parent Relocation Statute Law.

See also Tennessee Parenting Plans and Child Support Worksheets: Building a Constructive Future for Your Family featuring examples of parenting plans and child support worksheets from real cases available on Amazon.com.