Tennessee summary judgment: thirty days out, five days back, and three ways to answer each fact

Tennessee's Rule 56 gives the moving party a long runway and the opponent a short one: the motion goes out thirty days before the hearing, and the response is due five days before it.

What Tennessee adds that most states do not is a third way to answer each asserted fact. You can agree it is undisputed, agree it is undisputed for purposes of the motion only, or demonstrate that it is disputed.

That middle option matters. It lets you decline to fight a fact on this motion without conceding it for trial.

The two deadlines

Tenn. R. Civ. P. 56.04:

The motion shall be served at least thirty (30) days before the time fixed for the hearing. The adverse party may serve and file opposing affidavits not later than five (5) days before the hearing.

And Rule 56.03 sets the same five-day deadline for the fact response: "Any party opposing the motion for summary judgment must, not later than five days before the hearing, serve and file a response to each fact set forth by the movant."

Thirty days is generous notice. Five days is not much time to build the response — so the work starts when the motion arrives, not when the deadline approaches.

The statement of facts

Rule 56.03:

Specifying Material Facts. In order to assist the Court in ascertaining whether there are any material facts in dispute, any motion for summary judgment made pursuant to Rule 56 of the Tennessee Rules of Civil Procedure shall be accompanied by a separate concise statement of the material facts as to which the moving party contends there is no genuine issue for trial. Each fact shall be set forth in a separate, numbered paragraph. Each fact shall be supported by a specific citation to the record.

Three requirements on the movant: a separate concise statement, separately numbered paragraphs, and a specific citation to the record for each fact.

This is not optional. Rule 56.04 makes the judgment itself conditional on it: "Subject to the moving party's compliance with Rule 56.03, the judgment sought shall be rendered forthwith if…"

So a motion that folds its facts into the memorandum, or that cites the record loosely, has a compliance problem before the merits are reached — and pointing that out is a legitimate part of the response.

Three ways to answer

The heart of Tennessee practice:

Any party opposing the motion for summary judgment must, not later than five days before the hearing, serve and file a response to each fact set forth by the movant either (i) agreeing that the fact is undisputed, (ii) agreeing that the fact is undisputed for purposes of ruling on the motion for summary judgment only, or (iii) demonstrating that the fact is disputed. Each disputed fact must be supported by specific citation to the record. Such response shall be filed with the papers in opposition to the motion for summary judgment.

Option (ii) is the one to reach for whenever a fact is not worth fighting on this motion but you do not want it fixed for trial. Many states force a binary choice; Tennessee does not.

The response must address each fact, and that a disputed fact needs a specific citation — an assertion that the fact is contested, without a record cite, does not satisfy (iii).

You can add your own facts, and the movant can reply

In addition, the non-movant's response may contain a concise statement of any additional facts that the non-movant contends are material and as to which the non-movant contends there exists a genuine issue to be tried. Each such disputed fact shall be set forth in a separate, numbered paragraph with specific citations to the record supporting the contention that such fact is in dispute. If the non-moving party has asserted additional facts, the moving party shall be allowed to respond to these additional facts by filing a reply statement in the same manner and form as specified above.

The opponent may file additional material facts in the same numbered, record-cited form. If you do, the movant gets a reply statement in the same form — so expect the exchange to continue.

This is the mechanism by which a respondent puts its own version of events in front of the court, and it is worth using rather than relying on the memorandum alone.

The court must state its grounds

Also in Rule 56.04:

The trial court shall state the legal grounds upon which the court denies or grants the motion, which shall be included in the order reflecting the court's ruling.

"Shall state", and the grounds "shall be included in the order". Whichever way the ruling goes, you are entitled to know why, in the order itself — which matters directly if the case goes up on appeal.

If an order arrives without stated grounds, that is worth raising promptly.

The standard, and partial judgment

the judgment sought shall be rendered forthwith if the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, and admissions on file, together with the affidavits, if any, show that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to a judgment as a matter of law.

A summary judgment, interlocutory in character, may be rendered on the issue of liability alone although there is a genuine issue as to the amount of damages.

The full record is available — pleadings, depositions, interrogatory answers, admissions and affidavits — unlike Virginia's much narrower list. And liability may be decided alone, interlocutorily.

When each side may move

Rule 56.01 — the claimant:

For Claimant. A party seeking to recover upon a claim, counterclaim, or cross-claim or to obtain a declaratory judgment may, at any time after the expiration of thirty (30) days from the commencement of the action or after service of a motion for summary judgment by the adverse party, move with or without supporting affidavits for a summary judgment in the party's favor upon all or any part thereof.

Rule 56.02 — the defending party:

For Defending Party. A party against whom a claim, counterclaim, or cross-claim is asserted or a declaratory judgment is sought may, at any time, move with or without supporting affidavits for a summary judgment in the party's favor as to all or any part thereof.

A defendant may move at any time; a claimant must wait thirty days from commencement, unless the other side moves first.

Where this connects

A Tennessee Rule 12.02(6) motion converts into this rule if outside material is presented and not excluded — see the Tennessee motion to dismiss, and note that four defenses there cannot be rescued by amendment.

For the discovery that produces the record these motions depend on, see Tennessee discovery deadlines. If judgment has already been entered against you, see setting aside a Tennessee default judgment.

How Tennessee compares

A short checklist

1. Find the hearing date. Both deadlines run backwards from it.
2. Start the response the day the motion arrives. Five days is the whole window.
3. Answer every numbered fact with (i), (ii) or (iii).
4. Use option (ii) deliberately where a fact is not worth fighting now but you want it preserved for trial.
5. Cite the record for every disputed fact. An assertion without a citation does not comply.
6. Add your own material facts in the same numbered, cited form — and expect a reply statement.
7. Check the movant's compliance with 56.03. The judgment is expressly subject to it.
8. Make sure the order states the legal grounds. The rule requires it either way.
9. Consider moving on liability alone where damages are genuinely disputed.

Where these rules live

• Tenn. R. Civ. P. 12 — Defenses and Objections
• Tenn. R. Civ. P. 56 — Summary Judgment

This page explains what the rules say. It isn't legal advice, and what makes a fact material or a dispute genuine is developed in case law this site doesn't cover.