The Petition for Divorce is the initial document filed with the Tennessee court. It is in this document that the filing spouse will request the court to terminate the marriage under certain specified grounds. We are dedicated to serving our clients in these very sensitive matters.

The Tennessee court may grant a divorce on one of the following grounds:

No Fault Based Grounds:

1. Irreconcilable differences
2. Living separate and apart without cohabitation for 2 years when there no minor children

Fault Based Grounds:

1. Impotence
2. Adultery
3. Incarceration or felony conviction
4. alcohol and drug addiction
5. Wife is pregnant by another at the time of marriage without husband's knowledge
6. Willful desertion for one year
7. Bigamy
8. Endangering the life of the spouse
9. Conviction of an infamous crime
10. Refusing to move to Tennessee with a spouse and willfully absenting oneself from a new residence for 2 years
11. Cruel and inhuman treatment
12. Indignities that make the spouse's life intolerable
13. Abandonment, neglect, or banning the spouse from the home.

(Tennessee Code - Volume 6A, Title 36, Sections 36-4 101 and 36-4 103)

When a couple can reach an agreement on how to divide property and other assets, and if there are no children to consider, a divorce may be a fairly straightforward negotiation. Most divorces, however, are far from simple. Making new rules to live by with regard to children, and arriving at a fair distribution of marital assets are often contentious. In a marriage of long duration with significant assets, the complexity of arriving at a marriage settlement takes expert legal and financial advice and guidance.

Our office represents individuals and families in a wide array of domestic relations issues including: