Tennessee procedural guides

Plain-English guides to the Tennessee Rules of Civil Procedure, each one tied to the rules it relies on. Every rule named in a guide has its own page with the official text.

• Responding to a Tennessee complaint: 30 days, and five days' notice before any defaultTennessee gives 30 days to answer a complaint, and Rule 55.01 requires five days' written notice of a default application to every defendant — whether or not they ever appeared.
• Tennessee discovery deadlines: 30 days, 45 if you are the defendantTennessee gives 30 days to answer interrogatories, respond to document requests, and answer requests for admission — with 45 days for a defendant counted from service of the summons and complaint.
• The Tennessee motion to dismiss: four defenses you cannot rescue by amendingTennessee Rule 12.02 lists eight defenses, and Rule 12.08 says four of them cannot be raised by amendment — a harder waiver rule than the federal one.
• Setting aside a Tennessee default judgment: five days' notice, and only five groundsTennessee Rule 55.01 requires five days' written notice before a default judgment even if you never appeared — and Rule 60.02 offers five grounds, not six.
• Tennessee summary judgment: thirty days out, five days back, and three ways to answer each factTennessee Rule 56.03 requires a numbered statement of facts and lets the opponent agree a fact is undisputed for purposes of the motion only — a middle option most states lack.
• The Tennessee motion to compel: no certification required, but fees run both waysTennessee Rule 37 imposes no conference certification requirement, but makes an expense award mandatory whether the motion is granted or denied.
• Tennessee garnishment: the bank balance on the night of service, and ten years to collectTennessee Rule 69.05 catches a bank balance as it stood the night of service, gives the garnishee ten days to answer, and makes a silent garnishee liable for the whole judgment.
• Tennessee depositions: five days in county, seven out — and video can replace the transcript entirelyTennessee Rule 30 sets the shortest deposition notice periods on this site, five days in the county of suit and seven outside it, and allows audio-visual recording with no stenographic record at all.
• Tennessee injunctions: a restraining order can only stop something, an injunction can order itTennessee Rule 65 recognizes three forms of injunctive relief and draws a hard line — a restraining order may only restrict conduct, while an injunction may also mandatorily direct it.
• Tennessee nonsuit: filing the notice is not enough — you need the signed orderTennessee Rule 41 gives a plaintiff the right to take a voluntary nonsuit any time before trial, but requires a signed order of dismissal, and the date that order is entered governs the running of time periods.
• Tennessee subpoenas: twenty-one days, and silence waives everything but your costsTennessee gives a non-party witness at least 21 days to respond to a subpoena, and failing to object in that window waives all objections except the right to seek the reasonable costs of production.

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