Dad Entitled to Only 80 Days Parenting Time
Tennessee child custody case summary on maximizing parenting time in divorce and family law.
Dad entitled to only 80 days per year parenting time.
Samuel Forrester Hunter v. Winnie Sue Cooper
The parents in this Williamson County, Tennessee, case divorced after two years of marriage, and the court was called upon to decide custody for their six-month-old child.
After the case was filed, the father had only sporadic contact with the child. After the court set a temporary parenting plan, he had multiple short visits.
The case went to trial two years later. The evidence showed that the mother was the child’s primary caregiver. The father was a well-known expert in the filed of neuroimmunology, and he consulted with patients, spoke frequently, performed research, and authored numerous scholarly articles.
The father believed that the child was developmentally delayed, but the mother disputed this. The father also believed that the mother suffered from untreated bipolar disorder, but her expert psychologist disputed this. The father’s expert testified that the mother was quick-tempered and argumentative, and was very concerned about parental alienation. He recommended giving the father significant time with the child.
Ultimately, the trial court named the mother as primary residential parent, and granted the father 80 days per year of parenting time. The father then appealed to the Tennessee Court of Appeals. He argued that the parenting schedule failed to maximize his parenting time.
The Court of Appeals began by noting that maximum parenting time is a goal, but it is not the primary concern. Instead, the best interests of the child takes precedence.
The father argued that the trial court had erred in not specifically addressing the portion of the custody statute mentioning maximum participation. But the appeals court pointed out that the lower court had conducted a very detailed best interest analysis.
The father made some arguments as to ways the lower court could have maximized his parenting time. But the appeals court pointed out that its role was not to “tweak a visitation order.” Instead, the lower court had great discretion, and the appeals court did not view that discretion as having been abused.
For these reasons, the Court of Appeals affirmed the judgment of the lower court.
No.M2022-01050-COA-R3-CV (Tenn. Ct. App. Oct. 30, 2024).
See original opinion for exact language. Legal citations omitted.
To learn more, see Child Custody Laws in Tennessee and our video, How is child custody determined in Tennessee?
To learn more, see Modifying Custody & Parenting Plans and our video, How is child custody determined 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.
