Child placement and support
Tennessee no longer uses the word “custody”. This has been replaced with the term “residential placement”. However, the concept remains the same. The minor children will need to reside somewhere and with someone. Although many parents are attempting to ‘share’ residential placement, this should be done with caution. Children need both parents, but also need stability. We have established successful “shared-parenting” households and the children seem to do well as long as the parents accept and appreciate the differing parenting styles in each household and don’t place the child in the middle.

Child support is determined in Tennessee under a “shared income” model. This means that the incomes of both parents are considered. It also considers the number of days the child spends in each household, the work-related childcare, the enrichment expenses of the child (sports, activities, and private education), and the cost of health insurance and other children that require support but are not part of the current order. If it sounds complicated, it is. Once all the required data is collected, the numbers are placed in worksheets that assist us in calculating the amounts. In addition, where a person is “voluntarily unemployed” or “voluntarily underemployed”, a certain level may be assigned to them by the Court.