Terri Ann Kelly v. Willard Reed Kelly

Summary

The Tennessee Supreme Court resolved an issue of first impression, holding that a trial court's credibility determinations about a witness who testifies by telephone must receive the same considerable deference given to live in-court witnesses, because telephonic testimony resembles live testimony rather than the documentary evidence appellate courts may freely reweigh. Applying that standard, the Court held the Court of Appeals erred by independently discrediting the son's guidance counselor and found no abuse of discretion in the trial court's best-interests designation of the mother as the boy's primary residential parent. The Court accordingly reversed the intermediate court's custody ruling and reinstated the trial court's decision, leaving its alimony and attorneys' fee modifications undisturbed.