Of Counsel lawyer Brett D. Stokes has had a notable victory up in the Tennessee Court of Appeals.

Here are the basic facts: The matter is a divorce case where the Wife denied that the parties were married. The Husband and Wife were originally married in 1997 in Texas, and then returned to their residence in California shortly thereafter. In 2002 the parties were made aware that the Husband’s prior divorce was never actually granted. This law school exam set of facts led to the legal issues of: (1) whether the parties' 1997 marriage was legitimate under Texas and California law; and (2) whether the State of Tennessee would recognize the marriage?

The trial court agreed with the wife and held that -- despite the fact that the parties had not been married under Tennessee law -- the parties were never married, according to Tennessee law.

Brett appealed the case to the Court of Appeals, and prevailed in that Court. Congratulations to Brett!