The Mayor waited too long to ask for the recusal of the Court Chancellor
Tennessee case summary on recusal in divorce.
Husband wants recusal of Chancellor. The appeals court denied his request on the basis that he had raised concerns earlier. He filed for divorce on March 20, 2023. The chancellor assigned the case recused herself on her own initiative, stating it was necessary to avoid the appearance of impropriety. The case was randomly assigned to Chancellor JoeDae L. Jenkins, who accept the assignment.
Various pleadings were filed and a hearing was held. On June 28, the court issued an oral ruling. On July 24, the court issued an order allowing the mother to move with her children. In November, the motion was denied after a hearing. The husband’s motion was based on an alleged appearance impropriety arising from his authority to control the county budget. The husband appealed the decision to the Tennessee Court of Appeals. The appeals court noted the Chancellor accepted the case in march, but six months passed before the husband filed his motion.
On appeal, the husband argued that he didn’t see the need to raise the issue, since he contemplated an out-of-court resolution.
The appeals court agreed with the lower court. If the husband thought there was a reason for recusal he should’ve raised it from the start of the case. It agreed that the issue was waived and affirmed the order of the lower court denying the motion. W2023-01794-COA-T10B-CV (Tenn. Ct. App. See original opinion for exact wording. Legal citations have been omitted.
For more information, visit The Tennessee Divorce Process : How Divorces Work From Start to Finish.
