How to run Alimony Child Support in DocketMath for Tennessee

Step-by-step

This guide walks you through running Alimony + Child Support in DocketMath using Tennessee jurisdiction-aware rules for US-TN. It does not provide legal advice—treat it as a practical calculator workflow and data-entry checklist.

1) Open the correct calculator

• Go to DocketMath: /tools/alimony-child-support
• Confirm the jurisdiction is set to Tennessee (US-TN).

2) Enter the parties’ basic info (what DocketMath needs to apply TN logic)

In the calculator inputs, provide:

• Number of children (for the child support portion)
• Marital duration (years) so DocketMath can select the appropriate marriage-duration tier used in the TN schedule logic
• Income details for both parents (and any values DocketMath asks you to treat as net/combined)

Tennessee is supported by the verified framework in:

• Tenn. Code § 36-5-101 (child) and Tenn. Code § 36-5-121 (alimony)
• The TN child support guidelines framework shown in Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 1240-02-04

3) Enter combined income and let the TN schedule table drive the “base” support

For Tennessee, the calculator uses a net-income schedule approach with a defined income cap and a schedule table keyed to combined monthly net.

Use the verified TN values below as your reference when confirming what you entered:

• Income cap (presumptive): 28,250
• Minimum support order: 100
• Schedule behavior: DocketMath’s Tennessee schedule is driven by a combined_monthly_net table that includes (as examples)
  1,000; 1,500; 2,000; 2,500; 3,000; 4,000; 5,000; 6,500; 10,000; 15,000; 20,000; 28,250 (and other values in between, as available in the tool)

After you enter incomes, check the calculator’s intermediate selection:

• Does it land on the nearest combined_monthly_net band you intended (for example, 6,500 vs. 7,000, or 10,000 vs. 12,000)?
• Does the output respect the minimum support order of 100 if your inputs are low enough to trigger it?

4) Add alimony inputs for Tennessee alimony treatment

Next, provide the alimony-related inputs requested by the calculator (for example, any fields the UI uses to model how alimony is handled alongside child support).

Use the verified authorities as your reference points for the calculator’s Tennessee logic:

• Tenn. Code § 36-5-121 (alimony)
• Tennessee’s child support framework under Tenn. Code § 36-5-101

Because alimony outcomes can differ based on how alimony is structured, make sure you select the option DocketMath provides that matches what you’re trying to model (then re-run the calculation to confirm the alimony portion adjusts as expected).

5) Confirm how DocketMath applies the marriage-duration tier

Tennessee uses marriage-duration tiers in the schedule logic. The verified tier boundaries available in your TN setup include:

• Short tier: max 10 years
• Mid tier: min 10 years to max 20 years
• Long tier: min 20 years

DocketMath should pick the tier that matches the number of years you entered:

• If you enter 20 years, you should expect the calculator to treat it as at least the “long” boundary (based on the tool’s tier logic).
• If you enter 10 years, confirm whether the tool treats it as the boundary that falls under the “mid” tier.

6) Review output sections separately (don’t mix totals)

When the calculation finishes, review each component separately:

• Child support output (driven by the TN schedule table + child rules)
• Alimony output (driven by TN alimony rule modeling in the calculator)
• Any combined total output the tool displays

A quick sanity check:

• Compare your child-support output to what you’d expect given the selected combined_monthly_net band.
• Confirm the minimum support order behavior doesn’t clamp the result in a way that makes the number look “stuck.”

7) (Optional) Run modification scenario inputs if the tool supports it

If DocketMath offers scenario inputs for changes over time, use the verified Tennessee modification timing reference:

• Modification period: 3 years

This can be used to model an “adjustment window” concept in scenario runs (where the UI provides fields tied to modifications).

8) Save or export the results

Finally:

• Save the calculation (if available in your DocketMath flow)
• Export screenshots or a report for sharing internally or referencing later

If you’re building a family-law workflow document, you can also cross-check other DocketMath tools here: /tools/ to ensure you’re using the correct template for the job.

Common pitfalls

These are the mistakes that most often produce confusing results when running Tennessee alimony + child support in DocketMath.

• Using the wrong jurisdiction code

  • Ensure it’s Tennessee (US-TN) before you trust any outputs.

• Entering gross income when the calculator expects net/combined net inputs

  • The TN schedule in the tool is built around combined_monthly_net values (for example, 1,000; 2,500; 6,500; 20,000; 28,250).

• Forgetting the income cap logic

  • Tennessee setup includes an income cap of 28,250 (presumptive). If your combined income is above that reference, verify how the tool treats amounts beyond the cap.

• Mis-stating marriage duration by a few years

  • Tier boundaries matter:

    • short: max 10 years
    • mid: 10–20 years
    • long: 20+ years
  • A change from 9 to 10, or 19 to 20, can shift the tier selection and therefore the schedule output.

• Assuming the minimum support never applies

  • Tennessee setup includes a minimum support order of 100. If inputs are low enough, the calculator may output 100-consistent results.

• Not separating child support totals from alimony totals

  • Review each component. A single combined number can hide whether the change came from:

    • the TN child schedule band selection, or
    • the alimony modeling options you selected in the tool.

Try it

Use this quick execution checklist to run a Tennessee scenario end-to-end in DocketMath.

• Open /tools/alimony-child-support
• Confirm jurisdiction: Tennessee (US-TN)
• Enter:

  • children count
  • marital duration (in years)
  • combined monthly net (or individual incomes, as the UI requests)
  • alimony options/amount inputs per the calculator interface
• Verify (while reviewing the tool’s intermediate selections and/or output):

  • income cap reference: 28,250 (presumptive)
  • minimum support order: 100
  • schedule band selection matches your expected combined_monthly_net band (for example, 1,500; 2,500; 6,500; 10,000; 15,000; 20,000; 28,250)
• Review outputs:

  • child support component
  • alimony component
  • any combined total
• If you model change timing:

  • use 3 years as your modification period reference (where the UI supports it)

Once you get a result, try changing one input at a time:

• Increase marital duration by 1 year and watch for tier shifts near 10 and 20
• Adjust combined monthly net slightly around a table band and observe how it changes the child-support schedule output

Related reading

• How Alimony Child Support rules vary in New York — What varies by jurisdiction
• How to calculate Alimony Child Support in Philippines — Full how-to guide with jurisdiction-specific rules
• Worked example: Alimony Child Support in Philippines — Worked example with real statute citations