Disabled Tennessee Wife Entitled to Permanent Alimony After 14 Years Married
Tennessee alimony law case summary following 14 years of marriage. Divorce and alimony law from the Court of Appeals.
Sherry Juanita Carter Berkshire v. Edwin Carl Berkshire, III
At the time of their 1999 marriage, the husband in this Tennessee divorce case was 27 years old, and the wife was 46. It was the first marriage for the husband, but the wife had been married twice before and had two daughters. The wife had health problems at the time of the marriage, including multiple sclerosis.
She did not work outside the home, and the husband worked as an automobile mechanic and had trained for two years as a diesel mechanic.
In 2008, the wife filed for divorce, but the parties continued living together. The husband moved out of the house in 2011, at which time the wife proceeded with the case. Trial was held, and the court entered judgment in 2013. The wife was granted divorce on the grounds of adultery, and she was awarded the residence. The husband’s half of the residence was awarded to the wife as alimony in solido. The total property division resulted in the wife getting over $92,000, with the husband receiving negative $11,000.
Since the wife was eligible to receive social security benefits, the court awarded her only transitional alimony of $400 per month for four months. The wife appealed to the Tennessee Court of Appeals, and argued that she should have been given an award of permanent alimony.
The appeals court began its analysis by examining cases and statutes defining the various types of alimony, and the factors to be applied in making such awards. And then it made clear that it viewed the wife as being the economically disadvantaged spouse, and that she could not achieve self-sufficiency or be rehabilitated. She suffered from numerous medical problems and was totally and permanently disabled. It did note, however, that the wife’s daughter had permanently resided with her and had income, and the appeals court held that the daughter’s income was relevant in determining need. It then examined the husband’s income and work history, and agreed that his reasonable income was about $62,000 per year.
Based upon these factors, the appeals court ruled that the evidence preponderated against the trial court award of only four months’ alimony. Based upon all of the evidence, it concluded that the award should be modified to $150 per week, which would be payable until she died or remarried.
For these reasons, the Court of Appeals affirmed the lower court’s judgment, but only after making this modification.
No. E2014-00022-COA-R3-CV (Tenn. Ct. App. Dec. 1, 2014).
See original opinion for exact language. Legal citations omitted.
To learn more, read Tennessee Alimony Law.
