Unwed TN Dad Named Primary Residential Parent After Stormy Relationship

Tennessee child custody and name change case summary in family law.

In re: Izzabella B.

The child in this Tennessee custody case was born in 2013, and a few months later, her parents ended their stormy romantic relationship.  The father filed a petition in the juvenile court asking to be named the lawful father, and for an order setting a parenting plan, and changing the child’s last name to his.

While the case was pending, the parents temporarily reconciled, but the relationship ended again with an incident at Thanksgiving that resulted in the father’s arrest.  There was yet another reconciliation, but the relationship ended for good when the child was a year old.

A trial was held, and both parents accused the other of various acts of violence.  The father testified that he believed the mother to be addicted to alcohol, and that she mixed diet pills with alcohol.  He submitted photographs of cases of alcohol in the back of the mother’s truck, as well cas cans of beer in her refrigerator.  The mother accused the father of using or selling drugs.

The father’s ex-wife testified about the father’s parenting skills.  She had also been married to the mother’s ex-husband.  She testified that she didn’t have any concerns about the father’s parenting skills of their children, and that she didn’t believe that he used drugs.  The court also heard testimony of other persons who knew the parents.

After sorting out all of the testimony, the trial court issued its order.  It named the father the primary residential parent, with 245 days of parenting time.  The mother was awarded 120 days.  The court granted the father’s request to change the child’s name.  The court stated that it did not find the mother to be a credible witness, and that she had a history of unstable relationships with several men.  The mother then appealed to the Tennessee Court of Appeals.

The appeals court first noted that in non-jury cases, the appeal is reviewed anew, but that the factual findings of the lower court have a presumption of correctness, unless the evidence preponderates against them.  It also stressed that trial judges are in the best position to evaluate the credibility of witnesses.

On the issue of naming the primary residential parent, the appeals court first noted that the trial judge had issued a ten-page written order carefully reviewing all of the relevant statutory factors.  The mother argued that she had been unfairly punished because of her “testimonial style.”  But the appeals court ruled that the trial judge had properly weighed the parties’ credibility, and found the mother’s lacking.

The appeals court examined the lower court’s findings as to the mother’s alcohol use, and concluded that they were not contrary to the preponderance of the evidence.

For these reasons, the appeals court concluded that naming the father the primary residential parent had been proper.

On the issue of name change, the appeals court first noted that courts should not change children’s names unless the change promotes the child’s best interests.  In this case, the lower court had changed the name because of the need for future continuity, since the father would be the primary residential parent when she entered school.  It also noted that the mother’s history of numerous paramours made it likely that her name would change in the future.  Also, the father had pointed out that there were no relatives with that name in the county, and that the name was associated with strip clubs owned by the mother’s father.

Since the lower court had made extensive findings as to credibility, the appeals court believed that the decision to change the name was correct.

For these reasons, the Court of Appeals affirmed the lower court’s order.

No. M2015-00963-COA-R3-JV (Tenn. Ct. App. Apr. 22, 2016).

See original opinion for exact language.  Legal citations omitted.

To learn more, see Child Custody Laws in Tennessee.