Three of Nashville’s highest-profile divorces in 2026 share a single attorney: Rose Palermo, the Tennessee family lawyer representing Jelly Roll, Summer Pardi, and RaeLynn in their respective splits.
Jelly Roll, Summer Pardi, and RaeLynn each filed the initial divorce paperwork against their spouses — Bunnie Xo, Jon Pardi, and Josh Davis — and each turned to Palermo for legal representation. The overlap is drawing attention across the country music world, though those familiar with Nashville’s legal circles say it comes as little surprise given Palermo’s standing in the field.
A Personal Connection and a Powerful Reputation
Summer Pardi and RaeLynn are known to be close friends, and the timing of their filings — Summer in May, RaeLynn the following month — suggests the referral may have been a direct one. But personal connections alone don’t explain why artists keep landing in Palermo’s office. Her reputation as one of Tennessee’s most formidable family law attorneys does most of the talking.
Palermo and her husband Denty Cheatham founded their law practice in 1973. Divorce work was not her original plan, but it became the cornerstone of her career. A 1979 appearance on CBS’s 60 Minutes — tied to a case she handled for singer-songwriter Tim Nichols — put her name in front of a national audience and cemented her image as a courtroom force opponents learned to fear. The legal world has long described her as firm but fair, while opposing counsel tends to use a different word: fearsome, particularly in cases involving infidelity.
A Client List That Reads Like a Country Music Hall of Fame
Over the decades, Palermo has built a client roster that spans generations of country music. She has represented Jason Isbell in his divorce from Amanda Shires, Maren Morris in her split from Ryan Hurd, Kacey Musgraves in her divorce from Ruston Kelly, Kelsea Ballerini in her divorce from Morgan Evans, Billy Ray Cyrus in his divorce from Firerose, Tracy Lawrence in his divorce from Frances Weatherford, Wynonna Judd in her divorce from D.R. Roach, Janis Oliver of Sweethearts of the Rodeo in her divorce from Vince Gill, and Jewel in her split from Ty Murray, among others. She also served as legal counsel for Conway Twitty’s estate during family disputes over rights and royalties in the 2000s.
Her ties to Nashville’s inner circle run deep. Palermo has described Naomi Judd as a “dear friend” and was present for the 2023 opening of a mental health facility named after the late star. Off the docket, she made legal history in Tennessee with the landmark Supreme Court decision Dunn v. Palermo, in which she successfully fought for the right to keep her maiden name after marriage.
“One thing I don’t have much of a stomach for is when kids are involved,” Palermo told the Nashville Scene. “But I can fight over a dollar any day of the week.”
With Jelly Roll, Summer Pardi, and RaeLynn’s cases all still working through the courts, Palermo’s name is unlikely to leave the country music conversation anytime soon.
