Tenn Parent’s College Tuition Payment Limited to Reasonable Amount

Tennessee child support case law summary on college tuition costs Tennessee Court of Appeals.

Linda Sue Long Hathaway (Branstetter) vs. Glenn Jefferies Hathaway – Tennessee child support law

Tennessee Parent’s Obligation for College Costs Limited to Reasonable Amount

At issue in this appeal was a single sentence from a “Marital Dissolution Agreement,” signed by the Mother, Linda Sue Long Hathaway (Branstetter), and the Father, Glenn Jefferies Hathaway, in 1987, when their children were 2 and 5 years old.  The contract provision read:  “The husband shall pay all customary and reasonable tuition expenses for the parties’ minor children in obtaining a bachelor’s degree or its equivalent.”  Based upon this language, the trial court ordered the Father, Glenn Jefferies Hathaway, to pay his daughter’s tuition, without limitation.  The Court of Appeals modified the decision.

Tennessee Father Must Pay the College Tuition He Agreed to Pay

Jeannea Lynn Jones vs. Kenneth Dale Jones – College Tuition in Tennessee Family Law. Case law summary.

Tennessee Father Must Pay the College Tuition He Agreed to Pay

The Parents were divorced in 2003 through a decree that incorporated a provision for a Marital Dissolution Agreement that said “The parties agree to equally divide the expense for college tuition and books for the parties’ daughters, Jennifer Page Jones and Jerrica L. Jones.”  The Father, Kenneth Dale Jones, also obligated himself to provide medical insurance plus half of the out-of-pocket medical costs.At the time of the court case, the Mother, Jeannea Lynn Jones, worked at Oral Roberts University in Oklahoma.  She testified that she moved from Tennessee to Oklahoma and took the job for the sole purpose of helping to pay for her daughters’ college educations.  In making the move, the Mother left a job at Murray Corporation in Tennessee and took a $10,000 per year pay cut.