TN Wife To Get More Rehabilitative Alimony Than Divorce Court Awarded
Tennessee alimony law case summary following 12 years of marriage. Tennessee divorce and family law from the Tennessee Court of Appeals.
DANIEL J. VELEZ v. CHRISTY M. VELEZ – Tennessee divorce and alimony law case – 12 Years Married
Daniel and Christy Velez were married for approximately 12 years and had two minor children, ages 3 and 7. In 2010, Daniel filed for divorce in Montgomery County and cited irreconcilable differences. Christy filed a counter-complaint and alleged irreconcilable differences and inappropriate marital conduct. Daniel admitted to a post-separation adulterous affair. Christy sought to be named as the primary residential parent.
Daniel was in the U.S. Navy for most of the marriage and was at times deployed overseas. He was discharged in 2008 after being disabled by post-traumatic stress disorder. At the time of the divorce, he earned $70,000 per year at Military Systems Group in Nashville, and also received some bonuses. He was also receiving $1,335 per month in Social Security benefits and $1,600 in military disability, which was about to end. Christy had a high school education and was primarily a stay-at-home mother, but had also worked some minimum-wage jobs. At the time of the divorce, she had recently enrolled in college to become an occupational therapist.
The trial court established Daniel’s income at $7,433 per month, an amount which did not include his bonuses. And even though Christy was not employed at the time of the divorce, the trial court imputed a salary of $1,642 per month to her.
The trial court denied Christy’s request for rehabilitative alimony. However, it did award her $25,000 for alimony in solido, along with $5,000 in attorney’s fees. The parties’ assets, after tax liabilities, totaled $125,741.80. The trial court awarded $62,870 to Christy, and $32,870.90 to Daniel.
On appeal, Christy argued that the trial court should have awarded her rehabilitative alimony in the amount of $3,023.33 per month for six years while she attended school to become an occupational therapist. The trial court had reasoned that the $25,000 alimony in solido was sufficient for her to begin her education.
The Court of Appeals pointed out that Christy was clearly the economically disadvantaged spouse, and that her earning capacity at minimum-wage jobs was much lower than Daniel’s. Therefore, the Court of Appeals reversed, and remanded the case for the trial court to determine Christy’s request for rehabilitative alimony. It noted that the trial court hadn’t properly considered the statutory factors, and the Court of Appeals was unable to conclude that the $25,000 alimony in solido was an adequate substitute for ongoing rehabilitative alimony. Therefore, the Court of Appeals remanded the case to use the proper factors to determine whether rehabilitative alimony should be awarded, either in addition to or instead of the $25,000.
Velez v. Velez, No. M2011-01949-COA-R3-CV (Tenn. Ct. App., July 31, 2012).
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.
