The Tennessee civil summons form is the court-issued notice that tells a defendant they’ve been sued and have thirty days to respond. To use it, you download the approved form (or pick one up from the clerk), fill in the county, court, parties, and plaintiff contact information, file it with your complaint and the filing fee, and let the clerk issue it. Once issued, you arrange for service on the defendant within ninety days.
Where to Get the Approved Form
The Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts publishes the approved summons on its website. Circuit and Chancery cases use one version; General Sessions cases use a separate civil summons built for that court’s simpler process. Both are available as PDFs on the court forms page at tncourts.gov.1Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts. Court Forms You can also get blank copies at your county court clerk’s office, usually pre-printed with the required language.
General Sessions courts handle smaller civil disputes, and those cases start with a civil warrant rather than a complaint and summons. The Tennessee Supreme Court has approved standardized General Sessions civil forms that every General Sessions court with civil jurisdiction must accept when filled out correctly.2Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts. Court-Approved General Sessions Civil Court Forms The rest of this article focuses on the Circuit and Chancery summons, since it involves more fields and a more detailed service process.
Filling In Each Blank
Rule 4.02 of the Tennessee Rules of Civil Procedure sets what a summons must contain: the name of the court and county, the title of the action, the file number, the defendant’s name, the response deadline, a warning that failure to respond will result in default, and the name and address of the plaintiff’s attorney (or of the plaintiff, if self-represented).3Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts. Tennessee Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 4.02 – Summons Form The approved form is laid out around those requirements.
Here’s what goes in each blank:
- County: the county where you’re filing.
- Case number: leave blank when you first prepare the form. The clerk assigns it after you pay the filing fee.
- Court name and county: the form reads “You are hereby summoned to defend a civil action filed against you in ____ Court, ____ County, Tennessee.” Fill in Circuit or Chancery and the county.
- Response deadline: the form is pre-printed with thirty days, which matches Rule 12.01. You don’t change this.4Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts. Tennessee Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 12.01 – When Presented
- Attorney for plaintiff: your attorney’s name and office address. If you’re representing yourself, put your own name and mailing address.
- Defendant name and address: the defendant’s full legal name and the address where you expect them to be served. A wrong name or a stale address is one of the most common reasons service fails, so verify both before filing.
The form also carries a pre-printed notice of personal property exemption informing the defendant that Tennessee law provides a $10,000 personal property exemption and that the homestead exemption depends on age and other factors under T.C.A. § 26-2-301. You don’t calculate anything for this section; the language goes out with every summons.
If you’re suing more than one defendant, ask the clerk for a separate summons for each.
Filing Fees and Getting the Summons Issued
You pay the filing fee when you file your complaint. The clerk then assigns your case number, dates and signs the summons, and delivers it (with copies of the complaint) to whoever will handle service. Under Rule 4.01, the clerk must promptly issue the summons once you file.5Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts. Tennessee Rule 4.01 – Summons Issuance By Whom Served Sanction for Delay Until the clerk issues it, the summons has no legal force.
Fees vary by county and case type. In Shelby County, a standard tort, breach of contract, or personal injury filing costs $341.50, and a name change or minor settlement filing is $166.50.6Shelby County, TN – Official Website. Schedule of Filing Fees – Circuit Court Nashville General Sessions civil warrants run about $145.75.7Circuit Court Clerk. General Sessions – Civil Division Filing Fees Call your local clerk before you go — fees change, and the wrong amount means a wasted trip.
Choosing How to Serve the Summons
Any adult who isn’t a party to the lawsuit can serve a Tennessee civil summons. The most common choice is the county sheriff’s office, which handles service as part of its regular duties.8University of Tennessee County Technical Assistance Service. Process Servers and Warrant Officers Tennessee doesn’t license private process servers, so any qualified adult can do it. A judge may formally appoint a private process server on a petition from five attorneys practicing before the court who state they can’t get reasonably prompt service from the sheriff.9FindLaw. Tennessee Code 8-8-108 – Deputies or Authorized Process Servers Acting in Case of Vacancy in Office of Sheriff Appointment of Private Process Server
Serving an Individual
The default method is personal delivery: the server hands the summons and complaint directly to the defendant. If the defendant is evading service, Rule 4.04 allows substituted service by leaving the papers at the defendant’s home with someone of suitable age and discretion who lives there, and the server records that person’s name on the proof of service.10Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts. Tennessee Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 4.04 – Service Upon Defendants You can’t jump to substituted service for convenience; the defendant has to actually be evading personal delivery.
Serving a minor or a person who is legally incompetent requires delivering the papers to their guardian, conservator, or custodial parent in Tennessee, with additional service on minors aged fourteen or older.
Serving a Business or Other Entity
Different entities have different designated recipients:
- Corporations (domestic or foreign doing business in Tennessee): an officer, a managing agent, the chief agent in the county where the suit is filed, or any agent authorized by appointment or law to accept service.
- Partnerships, LLCs, and unincorporated associations: a partner, managing agent, officer, or authorized agent.
- Nonresident individuals doing business through a Tennessee office, when the suit arises from that business: the person in charge of the office or agency.
For an out-of-state defendant or a business with no registered agent on file, the Tennessee Secretary of State can act as the agent for service under the long-arm statutes. The fee is $20.11Tennessee Secretary of State. Service of Summons Look up a company’s registered agent through the Secretary of State’s business search before deciding which route to use.
Service by Certified Mail
Tennessee also allows service by mail, which is often faster and cheaper than coordinating with the sheriff. The plaintiff, the plaintiff’s attorney, or another authorized person may send the summons and complaint by registered or certified mail, return receipt requested. The clerk provides the original summons, a certified copy, and a copy of the complaint for this purpose.
The catch appears if you later need a default judgment. The court will grant it on mail service only if the signed return receipt shows personal acceptance by the defendant or by the person designated under Rule 4.04 for that type of defendant. A refused delivery counts too: the postal service notes the refusal on the receipt, and under Rule 4.04(11), that refusal is treated as valid service. For a corporation, a refusal supports default only if the Secretary of State confirms you used the correct entity name and the correct registered agent name and address. The summons form has a “Return on Service of Summons by Mail” section at the bottom where you certify the mailing date, the receipt date, and who signed. Service by mail is complete on the date of mailing.
Service by Publication
When you truly cannot locate the defendant, service by publication is a last resort. It applies in specific circumstances: the defendant is a nonresident, can’t be found at their usual home and appears to have left the state, the sheriff returns process unserved, or the defendant’s name or residence is unknown despite diligent inquiry.12FindLaw. Tennessee Code Title 21 Proceedings in Chancery 21-1-203 You state the qualifying facts under oath in the complaint or in a separate affidavit. The clerk enters an order requiring the defendant to appear by a certain date, and that order is published in a designated newspaper for four consecutive weeks.13Justia. Tennessee Code Title 21 Chapter 1 Part 2 Section 21-1-204 Proof comes from an affidavit by the newspaper’s printer or by producing the newspaper in court. Courts scrutinize publication service closely, so use it only after other methods fail.
The 90-Day Clock and Return of Service
A summons isn’t good forever. If it hasn’t been served within ninety days after issuance, the server must return it to the court with an explanation.14Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts. Tennessee Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 4.03 – Summons Return An expired summons doesn’t kill your case; you can ask the clerk for a new one as many times as needed, and each reissuance gets a fresh ninety-day window.5Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts. Tennessee Rule 4.01 – Summons Issuance By Whom Served Sanction for Delay Long gaps between filing and service can still draw scrutiny and, in some cases, sanctions for failure to prosecute.
Once the summons is delivered, the server promptly files proof of service — often labeled “Officer’s Return” on the form. The server completes the return section on the original summons with the date, the server’s name, title, agency, address, and signature. Rule 4.03 makes clear that a late proof doesn’t invalidate the service itself. As a practical matter, though, the court needs the return on file before it will enter a default, and the filed return is what creates the official record that service happened.
If the Defendant Doesn’t Respond
If a defendant fails to answer or otherwise defend within thirty days after service, the plaintiff can apply for a default judgment under Rule 55.01 by filing an affidavit or other proof showing service and the missed deadline.15Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts. Tennessee Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 55.01 – Entry The defendant must receive written notice of the default application at least five days before the hearing, regardless of whether they ever appeared, with a narrow exception for defendants served only by publication who never appeared. If the amount of damages needs to be determined, the court may hold a hearing, order an accounting, or conduct whatever investigation it deems necessary.