20.01 Permissive Joinder. All persons may join in one (1) action as plaintiffs if they assert any right to relief jointly, severally, or in the alternative in respect of or arising out of the same transaction, occurrence, or series of transactions or occurrences and if any question of law or fact common to all these persons will arise in the action. All persons may be joined in one (1) action as defendants if there is asserted against them jointly, severally, or in the alternative, any right to relief in respect of or arising out of the same transaction, occurrence, or series of transactions or occurrences and if any question of law or fact common to all defendants will arise in the action. A plaintiff or defendant need not be interested in obtaining or defending against all the relief demanded. Judgment may be given for one or more of the plaintiffs according to their respective rights to relief, and against one or more defendants according to their respective liabilities.
Rule 20.Permissive Joinder of Parties
Last verified July 2, 2026
In one sentenceRule 20 lets multiple plaintiffs join in one action, or multiple defendants be joined, whenever their claims arise from the same transaction, occurrence, or series of transactions or occurrences and share a common question of law or fact, while giving the court power to order separate trials to avoid prejudice or delay.
Full Text of Rule 20
20.02 Separate Trials. The court may make such orders as will prevent a party from being embarrassed, delayed, or put to expense by the inclusion of another party against whom the party asserts no claim and who asserts no claim against the party, and may order separate trials or may make other orders to prevent delay or prejudice.
Advisory Commission Comments
Plain-English Summary
Rule 20.01 lets plaintiffs join together in a single lawsuit if they assert rights to relief — jointly, severally, or in the alternative — arising out of the same transaction, occurrence, or series of transactions or occurrences, and if any question of law or fact common to all of them will come up in the case. The same test applies to joining multiple defendants: they may be sued together whenever a right to relief against them, asserted jointly, severally, or in the alternative, arises from that same transactional link and raises a common question. No plaintiff or defendant has to be interested in every form of relief the complaint seeks, and judgment can go for or against particular parties according to their own rights and liabilities, even within a single joined action.
Rule 20.02 gives the court a release valve once parties are joined: it may order separate trials, or make any other order needed, to keep a party from being embarrassed, delayed, or put to needless expense by being joined alongside a party against whom it asserts no claim and who asserts no claim against it.
Joinder under Rule 20 keeps every joined party in the same lawsuit, which matters for venue and for how the case moves through the court — unlike consolidating separate lawsuits for trial, joinder folds the parties into one case from the start. Tennessee courts have generally read the "same transaction or occurrence" requirement with some latitude, favoring joinder where it avoids the risk of inconsistent verdicts over separate suits addressing overlapping facts.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do joined parties have to want the same relief?
No. Rule 20.01 does not require every plaintiff to want the same relief or every defendant to face the same liability. Judgment can be entered for or against particular parties according to their own individual rights and liabilities, even though they were joined in one action.
What can a court do if joinder unfairly burdens one party?
Rule 20.02 lets the court order separate trials, or make other orders it finds necessary, to protect a party from being embarrassed, delayed, or put to unnecessary expense by being joined with a party it has no claim against and that has no claim against it.
Is joinder under Rule 20 the same as consolidating two lawsuits?
No. Joinder under Rule 20 puts multiple parties into one lawsuit from the outset. Consolidating separate lawsuits under Rule 42 keeps them as distinct cases that are only tried together, which carries different consequences for venue and appeal.
Source & verification. The rule text and Advisory Commission Comments are reproduced verbatim from the
official Tennessee Rules of Civil Procedure (Tenn. R. Civ. P. 20). Prescribed by the Supreme Court of Tennessee (Tenn. Code Ann. §§ 16-3-402 to 16-3-407, 16-3-601). The plain-English summary is original and written by us. Last verified July 2, 2026. ·
Official source
Also known as: permissive joinderjoining plaintiffs or defendantssame transaction or occurrence
Advisory Commission Comments.
Rule 19 deals with situations where certain parties must be joined. Rule 20 deals with permissive joinder. The rule is designed to allow a single suit to determine the rights and liabilities of all persons when those rights and liabilities arose out of the same transaction or occurrence and when a common question of law or fact exists among all parties. Where the liberality of the permissive joinder provisions works a hardship on a particular party or parties, the court is empowered to order separate trials or make other orders necessary to prevent delay or prejudice.