Tenn. Former Husband’s Alimony Payment Reduced from $200/Wk to $100/Wk

Tennessee alimony modification law case summary after divorce following 24 years of marriage. Tennessee divorce and family law from the Tennessee Court of Appeals.

Robert Keith v. Cheryl Keith – Tennessee Alimony Modification Law

The wife, Cheryl Keith initiated a post-divorce case due to her filing a petition of contempt against the husband, Robert Keith for failure to pay alimony. The husband counterclaimed and sought the appeals court to terminate or modify the award of periodic alimony. The trial court found the husband in arrears and awarded the wife $8,000, but also found that a material change of circumstances occurred and reduced the husband’s alimony obligations. The husband appealed the lack of termination of his required alimony payments.

In this marriage, the two divorced in 1999 after a lengthy marriage. The trial court required the husband to pay the wife $200 per week in periodic alimony. 10 years after the divorce, in February of 2009, the wife petitioned the court for failure to pay. A trial occurred in May of 2009. The husband testified that while he had been employed for 34 years at La-Z-Boy Furniture Company, he was fired after he incurred a second safety violation in a year. He was denied unemployment. The husband earned $50,000 a year at the time of the divorce, but was unable to work for the next seven to eight months. Prior to the termination, alimony payments were made automatically from his check. After the termination, he held only odd jobs. He had remarried and his new wife was employed supporting the household.

In April of 2009, the husband worked as a contract employee for a security services company, working 12-hour shifts. He earned $81 a day and worked six days per week. His income was $972 every two weeks. The wife was a stay-at-home spouse throughout the marriage but worked at times. She testified she did not have any form of income because husband agreed to support her after the divorce. Her living expenses included $450 per month and a $400 payment of property taxes on time per year. The trial court determined a reduction in alimony to $100 per week was suitable due to the change in circumstances of the husband.

The husband appealed the decision not to terminate the award of alimony. The husband believed that since other adults lived in her home and helped to support her (her girlfriend’s adult daughter and her family) that the award of alimony was not necessary. The appeals court found that this did not support the argument for terminating alimony. Without payments of alimony, the wife could not pay basic utility services. The appeals court ruled that the husband did need to continue paying alimony and affirmed the lower court’s decision as such.

No. E2009-02201-COA-R3-CV, March 30, 2010.

See original opinion for exact language.  Legal citations omitted.

To learn more about alimony, read Tennessee Alimony Law in Divorce | Answers to FAQs.  Also, see the MemphisDivorce.com Tennessee Family Law Blog and its Alimony category.

Memphis divorce lawyer, Miles Mason, Sr. practices family law exclusively and is the founder of the Miles Mason Family Law Group, PLC, which handles Tennessee family law matters including divorce, alimony, alimony modification, child support, and child support modification.  Download our free e-Book, Your First Steps: 7 Steps Planning Your Tennessee Divorce.  See our Consultation and Fees page and call 901-683-1850.