1 Any court governed by these rules may, by local rule, allow documents to be filed, signed, and verified by registered users of an E-filing system. Any local rule that allows documents to be E-filed may also allow such documents to be E-served. Pleadings and other documents filed or served electronically under any such local rule shall be considered the same as written documents filed or served by conventional means.
Rule 5B.Electronic Filing, Signing, or Verification
Last amended July 1, 2022 · Last verified July 2, 2026
In one sentenceRule 5B lets a Tennessee court adopt, by local rule, an electronic filing system that treats e-filed and e-served documents the same as paper ones, and requires every court to accept electronic signatures from attorneys on pleadings and other legal documents.
Full Text of Rule 5B
2 Any court governed by these rules shall allow documents to be signed and/or verified by attorneys with an electronic signature either in the form of s/_____ (typed out), a graphic representation of an electronic signature, and/or a digital graphic representation of the signature as signed by the person. Any court governed by these rules also shall allow electronic signatures on all discovery, declarations, subpoenas, or any other legal document in this same way. An electronic signature shall be considered the same as an original signature for all purposes.
3 The following definitions shall apply herein:
a "E-file" or "E-filing" means the proper electronic transmission of original documents to and from the court for the purposes of E-filing using the court's E-filing system.
b "E-Filer" means a registered user who e-files a document.
c "E-Filing system" means a system adopted by local rule of any Circuit, Chancery, Criminal, Probate, Juvenile or General Sessions Court Clerk that allows for the E-filing of documents and is in compliance with the technological standards promulgated by the Tennessee Supreme Court.
d "E-service" or "E-served" means the automatically generated electronic transmission to all participants in a case who are registered users, by and through the E-filing system, of (i) a notice of the filing of a document with a copy of the document attached, (ii) a notice of the filing of a document with a hyperlink to the document, or (iii) a notice of the filing of a document and the document can be accessed by the registered user in the E-filing system.
e A "registered user" is a person who has properly registered with and has been authorized by a court system administrator to use an E-filing system for the E-filing of documents in accordance with the requirements of a local rule of court. A registered user is deemed to have consented to E-service and is responsible for maintaining a valid and current e-mail address in the E-filing system.
Advisory Commission Comments
Advisory Commission Comments [2020].
Rule 5B is amended along with Rule 5.02 to provide for a means of service through a Court's e-filing system adopted in accordance with the first sentence of this rule. The existing Rule 5B provides for e-filing under applicable local rules, but does not provide for service to be made through an e-filing system. The 2020 amendment provides rules for service to be accomplished through an e-filing system. These definitions apply when service is made through an e-filing system under Rule 5.02.
Advisory Commission Comments [2022].
Rule 5(B) is amended by adding a new sub-paragraph 2 to allow electronic signatures by attorneys, irrespective of the adoption of E-filing, including, but not limited to, signatures completed in DocuSign and Adobe signing programs and/or other such programs.
Amendment History
- As added by order entered December 14, 2009, effective July 1, 2010.
- amended by order dated January 16, 2020, effective July 1, 2020.
- amended by order dated January 16, 2020, effective July 1, 2020.
- amended by order dated December 14, 2021, effective July 1, 2022.
Plain-English Summary
Rule 5B is permissive at its core: any court governed by the civil procedure rules may, by local rule, allow documents to be filed, signed, and verified through a registered e-filing system, and may allow those same documents to be served electronically through that system. Once a local rule adopts such a system, documents filed or served through it count the same as documents filed or served by conventional paper means.
Separately, and without regard to whether a court has adopted e-filing, Rule 5B requires every court to accept an attorney’s electronic signature — whether typed out as "s/" followed by the name, a graphic representation of a signature, or a digital signature such as one produced through an electronic signing program — on pleadings, discovery, declarations, subpoenas, and other legal documents, treating it as equivalent to an original signature.
The rule defines the vocabulary the rest of the e-filing framework, including Rule 5.02(3), relies on: "e-filing" is the electronic transmission of original documents to and from the court through the adopted system; an "e-filer" is a registered user who files that way; an "e-filing system" is one adopted by local rule and compliant with the technological standards the Tennessee Supreme Court sets; "e-service" is the automatic electronic transmission the system generates to registered users, whether as an attached document, a link to it, or notice that it is available in the system; and a "registered user" is someone authorized by the court’s system administrator to use it, who is treated as having consented to e-service and who is responsible for keeping a current email address on file.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does every Tennessee court have an e-filing system under Rule 5B?
No. Rule 5B permits a court to adopt an e-filing system by local rule; it does not require every court to have one, and only courts that adopt a compliant system may use it for e-filing and e-service.
Are electronic signatures valid on Tennessee court filings?
Yes. Rule 5B requires every court governed by the rules to accept an attorney’s electronic signature — typed, graphic, or digital — as equivalent to an original signature on pleadings, discovery, and other legal documents, regardless of whether the court has adopted e-filing.
What makes someone a "registered user" under Rule 5B?
A person authorized by a court system administrator to use that court’s adopted e-filing system under its local rule. Becoming a registered user is treated as consenting to e-service and comes with a duty to keep a current, valid email address on file.
Source & verification. The rule text and Advisory Commission Comments are reproduced verbatim from the
official Tennessee Rules of Civil Procedure (Tenn. R. Civ. P. 5B). 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: e-filingelectronic signatureelectronic filing system
Advisory Commission Comments [2010].
The courts in certain counties have expressed a desire to implement an electronic filing system. This rule permits trial courts, by local rule, to adopt such systems. Electronic filing systems have also been implemented in all of the federal district courts (with the sole exception of the United States District Court for the Northern Mariana Islands) and in a number of states. Electronic filing offers numerous advantages over traditional "paper filing," including vastly increased public access to court documents and reduction of the time and expense incurred by litigants and court personnel in filing, storing, and retrieving documents. The Commission envisions that, in the not too distant future, all of Tennessee's courts will adopt electronic case filing systems. In order to achieve statewide uniformity, the systems utilized throughout the state must comply with technological standards promulgated by the Supreme Court. Without such uniformity, the desired ease of access to data and cost efficiencies could not be achieved.