Husband Can’t Set Aside Divorce Settlement After Buyer’s Remorse

Husband Can’t Set Aide Divorce Settlement After Buyer’s Remorse

Tennessee case summary on divorce process.

Lee Ann Polster v. Russell Joseph Polster

The husband and wife in this Montgomery County, Tennessee, case were married in 1992.  They separated in 2020, and the wife filed for divorce on the grounds of irreconcilable differences.  Shortly after the filing, the parties executed a marital dissolution agreement that was filed with the court.  That agreement provided that the husband would pay alimony of $500 per month for 60 months.  It also divided their home and other property.  The husband did not have an attorney when he executed the agreement, but the agreement stated that he was given the opportunity to consult with one.

The matter was set for hearing, but the husband got cold feet and filed a pleading asking for an extension of the court’s approval.  The husband agreed to the uncontested divorce, but asked that the court order three months of marital counseling in order to save the marriage if possible.

Notwithstanding this request, the court approved the agreement and filed the final decree.

The husband then hired an attorney who moved to set aside the decree.  In this motion, the husband argued that he was under duress.  He also believed that he could attend the final hearing, but because of COVID, he was not allowed to enter the courthouse.  The trial court denied the motion, and noted that the time to object was before filing of the decree.  The trial court also noted that there was “no showing of how a soon to be ex-wife could overcome the free will of a fifty year old man.”  Dissatisfied with this outcome, the husband then appealed to the Tennessee Court of Appeals.

The appeals court first noted that the trial court’s findings carried a presumption of correctness and would not be set aside unless the evidence preponderated against them.

The husband first argued that he had withdrawn his consent to the document, which had been signed and notarized.  But the appeals court pointed out that the husband had communicated with the court before the document was approved, and nowhere in his filing did he make any allegation of duress or mental incapacity.  His only request was for a delay, and for an order for marital counseling.  Since the husband had not withdrawn his consent before the court approved the document, the appeals court held that this argument was invalid.

The husband also argued that his Due Process rights were violated because he was unable to appear in court.  But in an uncontested divorce, there is no requirement for a hearing.  And even if the husband was confused and believed that there was to be an in-person hearing, there was no record that the husband made such a request.  Because of COVID-19, in-person hearings had been suspended throughout the state.  The husband requested neither an in-person nor a teleconference hearing, and the trial court was under no obligation to provide one in the absence of a request.

And when his attorney filed a request to set aside the judgment, the attorney specifically requested that the case could be decided on the pleadings, with neither a live nor teleconference hearing.  The appeals court pointed out that the husband received “precisely the amount of process he requested.”

The court went on to review the merits of the husband’s request and concluded that there were no grounds to set aside the judgment.  It also concluded that the wife was entitled to her attorney’s fees for defending the appeal.

For these reasons, the Court of Appeals affirmed the trial court and remanded the case for computation of attorney’s fees.

No.M2020–01150-COA-R3-CV (Tenn. Ct. App. Sep. 14,  2021).

See original opinion for exact language.  Legal citations omitted.

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