Rehab Alimony Award Overturned Due to Insufficient Fact Finding

Tennessee alimony divorce case summary after 16 years married.

Kristie Linley Sibley v. Corey D. Sibley

The husband and wife in this Montgomery County, Tennessee, case were married in 1998 and had no children.  In 2005, the husband was discharged from the military, and in 2008, he was convicted of theft of government property and sentenced to probation and ordered to pay restitution.  In 2013, he quit working for the family catering business and went to Arizona and then Miami.  In 2014, the wife filed a complaint for legal separation.  After trial, the wife was granted a divorce, and the court divided the parties’ property and awarded alimony.

The primary asset was the marital residence and some vehicles.  The residence was awarded to the wife.  She was also awarded $1,100 per month in rehabilitative alimony for 36 months, as well as $3,000 alimony in solido for her attorney fees.  The husband then appealed to the Tennessee Court of Appeals.

The appeals court first affirmed the lower court’s award of the marital residence to the wife.  It then turned to the issue of spousal support.  The husband argued that the award was improper because the trial court had made insufficient factual findings to support the award.

The appeals court listed the relevant statutory factors, the most important of which is the receiving spouse’s need and the obligor spouse’s ability to pay.  The appeals court cited earlier cases holding that there must be specific findings by the trial court as to the facts underlying the award of alimony.

In this case, the Court of Appeals found that the analysis of those underlying facts was missing.  The lower court had not explained the rationale for its decision, particularly with regard to the wife’s need or the husband’s ability to pay.

For these reasons, the Court of Appeals affirmed the award of the house, but reversed and remanded with regard to the alimony.  It ordered the lower court to make additional findings on the issues of alimony and attorney fees.

No. M2015-01795-COA-R3-CV (Tenn. Ct. App. May 25, 2017).

See original opinion for exact language.  Legal citations omitted.

To learn more, see Alimony Law in Tennessee.