Tennessee Lawmakers Cannot Appeal Same-Sex Divorce Case

Tennessee case summary on same-sex marriage and divorce.

Sabrina Renae Witt v. Erica Christine Witt

The spouses in this same-sex marriage were married in Washington, DC, in 2014.  During the marriage, by their agreement, one of the spouses became pregnant through artificial insemination, and a child was born in 2015.  The other spouse was not listed on the birth certificate, and she never adopted the child.  After the child was born, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that same-sex couples have the constitutional right to marry.

In 2016, the mother filed for divorce.  Her complaint stated that no biological child of the other spouse was born to the marriage.  The other spouse answered and asserted that she was presumed to be a legitimate parent of the child, under a Tennessee statute which states that a child born as a result of artificial insemination with “consent of the married woman’s husband” is deemed to be a “legitimate child of the husband and wife.”

The trial court held that the statute did not apply to the case, and that the other spouse was not a legitimate parent of the child.  The State of Tennessee, along with 53 legislators, made a motion to intervene in the case, and argued that the statute was constitutional and should be upheld.

Both spouses opposed the motion to intervene, and they went on to settle most of the case between themselves.  The trial court also denied the motion by the legislators to intervene.  After various motions were heard, the trial court made a permanent parenting plan naming the biological mother the primary residential parent, but granting some parenting time to the other spouse.  Neither spouse appealed, but the legislators filed an appeal with the Tennessee Court of Appeals.

Before even looking at the merits of the legislator’s arguments, the Court of Appeals first looked at whether the case was justiciable, and turned to the concept of mootness.  It noted that a case must be cognizable both at its inception and throughout its pendency.

The appeals court found that the case was completely decided by the final order, and that both parties accepted this final judgment and did not make any appeal.

For this reason, the Court of Appeals held that the case lost its justiciability.  Because the case was decided and neither party appealed, the case was now moot.

There were no issues remaining to be decided, so the Court of Appeals held that the appeal must be dismissed.

No. E2017-00243-COA-R3-CV (Tenn. Ct. App. Mar. 27, 2018).

See original opinion for exact language.  Legal citations omitted.

To learn more, see The Tennessee Divorce Process: How Divorces Work Start to Finish.