Tennessee Divorce Details
Contents
One of the easiest aspects of getting a divorce is the ability of the married woman to change her name back to her maiden name. This can happen quickly in every state. However, there are variations in divorce proceedings that vary from state to state.
Filing for divorce in Tennessee starts with establishing residency. The requirement is to be living in the state for at least six months before you can file for a petition. If you are a military personnel, that residency requirement goes up to one year.
In Tennessee, a couple can enter into a legal separation which will have them living apart from one another but dealing with matters of child support and custody. If a separation has been in effect for two years without any hope of reconciliation then an official divorce decree can be granted.
Typically, legal separations are a precursor to a no-fault divorce where both parties agree that the marriage is broken beyond repair. In a contested divorce, the grounds need to be approved by the court before the divorce decree is granted.
Legal Grounds for Divorce in Tennessee
As a spouse prepares to file for a contested divorce, they need to decide on the grounds for that divorce. Among the considerations is if the other spouse committed adultery or even bigamy. If the spouse willingly abandoned their partner for up to one year, was convicted of a felony crime, or is serving time in jail those can be additional grounds for divorce.
In Tennessee, you can also file for divorce if the wife was pregnant with another man’s baby at the time of the marriage or if either spouse has made living under one roof intolerable through emotional or physical abuse.
Filing with the Court in Tennessee
You must file your Tennessee divorce papers in the court located in the County where you presently reside. We will provide the court information in the documents that we send to you, but some of the courts in Tennessee are listed below:
- Davidson County Circuit Court:
1 Public Square, Suite 302, Nashville, TN 37201 P.O. Box 196303, Nashville, TN 37219 Phone: 615-862-5181 Fax: 615-862-5191 Filing Fax: 615-296-4501 - Knox County Circuit Court:
M-30 C/C Building, 3323 Division Street, Knoxville, TN 37902 Phone: 865-215-2400 - Hamilton County Circuit Court:
201 Seventh Street, Room 500, Chattanooga TN 37402 Phone: 423-209-6700 - Shelby County Circuit Court:
140 Adams Avenue, Room 324, Memphis, TN 38103 Phone: (901) 545-4710 - Madison County Chancery Court:
Courthouse, Room 200, 100 East Main Street, Jackson, TN 38301 Phone: 731-423-6032 - Montgomery County Chancery Court:
Two Millennium Plaza, Suite 101, Clarksville, TN 37041 Phone: (931) 648-5703 Fax (931) 648-5874 - Washington County Circuit Court:
Downtown Centre, Johnson City, TN Phone (423) 461-1415 - Washington County Chancery Court:
Downtown Centre, Johnson City, TN Phone: (423) 461-1450 - Rutherford County Circuit Court:
Judicial Building, Room 201, Murfreesboro TN Phone: Civil Division:(615) 898-7820 Fax: (615) 217-7119 - Rutherford County Chancery Court:
Judicial Building, Suite 302, Public Square North, Murfreesboro TN 37130 Phone: (615) 898-7860 Fax: (615) 849-9553
If your County court is not listed, the information for your court will be included in the divorce papers we send you.
Property Distribution Laws
Tennessee has deemed itself to be an equitable distribution state. That means that any property or assets that were created during the marriage become what will be divided no matter whose name might be on the title of ownership. Whoever’s fault it was for the marriage’s break-up is not considered by the judge. However, what is considered will be how long the marriage lasted, how old the couple is, what contributions were made by each spouse (homemaker versus salaried worker), the potential social security benefits, and the potential for each spouse to make their own money.
Alimony or Spousal Support Laws
When it comes to determining the amount of potential alimony payments the Tennessee divorce judge will take the fault of the break-up into consideration. They will also factor in who will be having custody of any children and what the child support payments might be.
Also taken into deliberation is whether or not the person receiving alimony will be capable of creating their own financial security or if they contributed to the financial security of their spouse. The question of maintaining a standard of living also comes into play when deciding on alimony payments.
Child Custody Laws
As with other states, Tennessee courts attempt to handle the issue of child custody by putting the needs of the child first and foremost. This will mean looking at the child’s emotional ties to the parents, their desires of where they want to live and go to school.
A judge can also look at how a child interacts with their parents and whether or not there have been any incidents of abuse. With all those considerations, the judge will rule on all custody and visitation matters.
