Grandmother Can’t Have Unsupervised Time After Drunken Incident
Tennessee case summary on alimony, child support, and custody in divorce.
Grandmother can’t have unsupervised time with kids after near drowning incident.
Kristen Alice Rowe v. Calvin Albert Rowe, III
The husband and wife in this Montgomery County, Tennessee, case were married in 2008 and had four children before they separated in 2022 and divorced that year.
A hearing was held before Judge Kathryn Olita, who set a temporary parenting plan. A trial was held in 2023, with the husband and wife being the only witnesses. The wife presented a statement showing her income at $500 per month, with expenses of over $6000.
The husband served in the military and had income of about $12,000 per month. A guardian ad litem provided a statement noting that the wife had been the children’s primary caregiver, but that both parents loved the children and were responsible and attentive.
Judge Olita named the wife the primary residential parent, with 221 days of parenting time. She also divided the estate by awarding the wife about $300,000 in marital assets and the husband about $274,000. The marital residence was awarded to the wife. The wife was also to be responsible for the mortgage, but she was not required to refinance until all of the children reached 18.
The wife was awarded transitional alimony of $5000 per month for six years, but when the husband retired from the military, this would be offset by her portion of his retirement. The $5000 also included the child support of $1992, meaning that the alimony award really amounted to $3008 per month.
The wife was also awarded $350 per month to cover her health insurance, as well as about $10,000 in attorney’s fees. The court made a specific finding that the wife was not voluntarily underemployed.
The husband appealed to the Tennessee Court of Appeals and raised a number of issues.
The husband first argued that the parenting plan failed to maximize his time with the children. But the appeals court reviewed the statutory factors and determined that a number of them strongly favored the wife. It noted, for example, that the wife had performed most of the parenting duties during the marriage, and provided continuity and security for the children.
The parenting plan included a provision that the paternal grandmother could not have unsupervised time with the children. In support of this provision, the wife had offered evidence that she drank to excess, and had once allowed one of the children to nearly drown. This testimony was not disputed, and the appeals court held that the restriction therefore had a valid basis. It did, however, make a slight modification, and required the wife to indemnify and hold harmless the husband for the mortgage debt.
The husband next argued that the alimony award was improper. But upon its review of the evidence and the statutory factors, the Court of Appeals concluded that the alimony award was proper. In particular, it noted that the wife was the economically disadvantaged spouse, and that the husband had the ability to pay.
The husband also argued that the award of attorney’s fees was improper. But again, upon its review of the evidence, the Court of Appeals affirmed this award.
The husband also argued that the wife should have been required to immediately refinance. But the appeals court found that the delay was for a definite period of time that was reasonable under the circumstances. The appeals court also held that the wife was entitled to her attorney’s fees on appeal, and sent the case back to the lower court for a determination of the amount.
For these reasons, with the exception of the slight modification, the Court of Appeals affirmed the judgment of the lower court and remanded the case.
No. M2024-00114-COA-R3-CV (Tenn. Ct. App. May 23, 2025).
See original opinion for exact language. Legal citations omitted.
To learn more, see The Tennessee Divorce Process: How Divorces Work Start to Finish.
To learn more, see Property Division in Tennessee Divorce and view our video Is Tennessee a 50 50 divorce state?
To learn more, see Child Support Laws in Tennessee.
To learn more, see Child Custody Laws in Tennessee and our video, How is child custody determined in Tennessee?
To learn more, see Alimony Law in Tennessee, and our video, How is alimony decided in Tennessee?
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.
