From Trial Court to the US Supreme Court– Not a Good Path For a Divorce

By Rice Divorce Law | November 06, 2020

In May 1980 I was sponsored for admission to the United States Supreme Court Bar by my father, George Rice, Jr. Over the years it became increasingly obvious that a divorce lawyer from Tennessee was not going to appear before the U. S. Supreme Court. Then this week, after 40 years of waiting, I signed my first filing to the United States Supreme Court. Associate Attorney Erin O’Dea and Paralegal Susan New were indispensable.

In this case, we won at trial when the opposing party tried to have our client found in contempt of court. We won when the other side appealed to the Tennessee Court of Appeals and got an award of attorney fees for the entire case added to our win. We won when the opposing party petitioned the Tennessee Supreme Court, and we won when they petitioned for a rehearing before the Tennessee Supreme Court (our brief on that was only one sentence).

If you are getting divorced, you do NOT want a case that goes up to the U. S. Supreme Court. Even with an award of attorney fees and winning you do not want this much litigation. Almost all our cases settle on good terms for our clients. When opposing counsel knows our record, many cases settle that may not otherwise settle. We want to help you get a good, quiet settlement of your divorce, but if you must go to court, we have the experience, expertise, and team you need.

After the appeal is over, my client has given me permission to post the story of the case.

This blog is written by the law clerks and interns of Rice Law. They document their experience working with Memphis divorce lawyer Larry Rice and Memphis divorce lawyer Nick Rice, as well as other members of Rice Law. Rice Law represents clients in divorce and family law matters in Tennessee and Mississippi. We hope these blog posts will be interesting and show their evolution as they move towards being divorce and family lawyers. The statements in these posts should not be used as legal advice about divorce or family law.
Trying to use the aboutdivorce.com website as a substitute for a lawyer potentially sets you up for a disaster of epic proportions