Tennessee Bar Reciprocity: Section 5.01 Comity Admission Steps

Tennessee bar reciprocity, more precisely called admission without examination or “comity,” lets an experienced out-of-state attorney get a Tennessee law license without sitting for another bar exam. The process is governed by Tennessee Supreme Court Rule 7, Section 5.01.¹ One thing to clear up first: despite the name, Tennessee does not require your home state to extend the same privilege to Tennessee lawyers. If you meet the criteria, you can apply regardless of where you are currently licensed.

The core requirements are five of the last seven years in active practice, admission by bar exam in at least one U.S. jurisdiction, completion of a short Tennessee-specific course, and a favorable character and fitness review. Plan on roughly six months from a complete application to admission, and longer if anything in your background needs a closer look.

Who Qualifies Under Section 5.01

Rule 7, Section 5.01 sets out seven requirements for comity applicants. The practice-experience threshold is the one that decides most cases: you must have been primarily engaged in the active practice of law for at least five of the seven years immediately before you file.¹ Any combination of U.S. states, territories, or the District of Columbia counts.

You also need to have been admitted by bar examination in at least one U.S. jurisdiction. If your only license came through a diploma privilege (as historically offered in Wisconsin), you have to file a separate petition with the Board of Law Examiners and go through a hearing before Tennessee will consider your comity application.¹

The remaining requirements are straightforward but non-negotiable:

A J.D. from an ABA-accredited law school, satisfying Sections 2.01 and 2.02 of Rule 7.
Current good standing in every jurisdiction where you hold a license, active or inactive.
No pending discipline and no unresolved disciplinary matters anywhere.
Satisfaction of the same character and fitness standard under Section 6.01 that applies to every Tennessee bar applicant.
Filing before you establish an office or a systematic and continuous presence for practicing law in Tennessee.

That last point trips people up. Move to Tennessee, open your laptop, and start taking Tennessee clients before your comity application is on file, and you risk violating the unauthorized-practice rules under Rule 8, RPC 5.5(b)(1).¹ File first, set up afterward.

The Tennessee Law Course

Every comity applicant has to complete the Tennessee Law Course. It is digital-only, costs $15, and covers the areas of Tennessee law that are not on the Uniform Bar Exam: civil procedure, criminal law, family law, property law, workers’ compensation, professional responsibility, and wills and estates.²

You do not get access right away. For comity applicants, the Board issues login credentials within five business days after your completed NCBE background investigation report comes in.² Once you have access, watch the clock. You must finish the course within one year of completing all other admission requirements, or you have to take it over.³

Documents to Gather Early

Several pieces of the application take weeks or months to obtain, so start pulling them together before you plan to submit.

The NCBE character and fitness application. Order this early. Processing time varies with the number of jurisdictions and employers the investigators have to contact.
A certificate of good standing with disciplinary history from the court of highest authority in every jurisdiction where you are admitted, active or inactive. These come from the state supreme court or its clerk, not from the state bar association.⁴
Documentation of your five-of-seven-years active practice, typically affidavits from employers or colleagues who can speak to the nature and duration of your work.
Official undergraduate and law school transcripts, sent directly to the Board.

The Board of Law Examiners posts the comity-specific forms on its website, separate from the bar exam forms.⁵ Download them, complete them digitally, save as PDFs, and upload through the Synergy portal. Anything you report that conflicts with what the NCBE investigation turns up will slow you down, so be precise.

Filing the Application

All submissions run through the Board’s Synergy online portal. You create an account, upload the completed forms and supporting documents, and pay a non-refundable application fee at submission. The Board sets its fee schedule under Section 11.01 of Rule 7, and the current amount is on the Board’s website.⁵ Your application is not treated as complete until every document and every fee is in.

Once everything is submitted, Board staff cross-check your uploaded materials against the NCBE report. If discrepancies show up or something in your background raises questions, expect a request for more information or a personal interview.

Character and Fitness Review

This is where applications stall most often. The Board reviews the full NCBE report alongside your self-disclosed history against the Section 6.01 standard. Most files go through without any follow-up, but three categories tend to draw a closer look: financial issues such as collections, bankruptcies, and tax liens; criminal history of any kind; and disciplinary actions or complaints in other jurisdictions.

Full, upfront disclosure is the single best thing you can do. Boards generally view an honest account of a past problem more favorably than one they have to dig out. Between the investigation and the review, the whole process can take six months or longer, so build that into your timeline.

After Approval: Oath, Registration, and Initial Fees

Approval by the Board is not the finish line. You still have to take the oath and register before you can practice.

Taking the Oath

You must take the oath of admission before an authorized judicial official in Tennessee. There are two ways to do it. Twice a year, typically in early summer and late fall, the Supreme Court holds a group swearing-in ceremony. Alternatively, you can arrange an individual oath by affidavit with any of a long list of eligible officials, including Supreme Court justices, appellate judges, circuit and chancery court judges, general sessions judges, and certain court clerks. Virtual administration by video conference is available through a Supreme Court justice or the Clerk of the Appellate Courts.⁶

If you go the affidavit route, file the paperwork within 30 days of taking the oath. At this stage you pay $50 for admission by affidavit to the Supreme Court and $150 for licensing.⁷

Board of Professional Responsibility Registration

You must register with the Board of Professional Responsibility. Your initial registration fee is prorated to line you up with the annual billing cycle based on your birth month and will not exceed $170.⁷ After that, the annual registration fee is $270, due on the first day of your birth month each year.⁸

What You Owe Every Year After Admission

Three obligations recur once you are licensed.

Continuing Legal Education

Tennessee requires 15 CLE credit hours per compliance year: 12 general hours and 3 hours in ethics or professionalism. Credits are due by December 31 of the compliance year, and the annual report is due by March 31.⁹ You can carry over up to 12 general hours and 3 ethics hours to the next year, but excess ethics hours cannot fill a general-hour shortfall. Miss the December 31 deadline and you owe a $100 non-completion fee on top of still having to earn the hours.

Professional Privilege Tax

Tennessee charges attorneys a $400 annual professional privilege tax, due June 1 each year. If you hold licenses in multiple professions subject to this tax, you only pay once.¹⁰

Annual BPR Registration

The $270 annual BPR fee is due on the first day of your birth month. Missing it can lead to administrative suspension of your license.

When Comity Isn’t the Right Fit

Comity assumes you want a full Tennessee license and you have the practice years to qualify. If that is not you, other pathways may apply.

If you took the Uniform Bar Exam elsewhere and scored at least 270, you can transfer your score to Tennessee instead of applying by comity. Scores are valid for three years from grade release, extendable up to five years with qualifying practice. The application and background investigation alone can take six to eight months.¹¹ The Tennessee Law Course is still required.

If you just need to handle a specific case in Tennessee, pro hac vice admission under Rule 19 lets you appear in that particular proceeding with a Tennessee-licensed attorney as local counsel.¹² If you are moving to Tennessee to work for a corporate employer rather than a law firm, you can register as in-house counsel under Section 10.01 within 180 days of starting the job, with your practice limited to representing that employer and its affiliates. And spouses of active-duty military service members stationed in Tennessee can apply for a temporary license under Section 10.06.¹³

1
Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts. Rule 7 Licensing of Attorneys
2
Tennessee Board of Law Examiners. Tennessee Law Course
3
Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts. Rule 7 Licensing of Attorneys – Section 1.07
4
Tennessee Board of Law Examiners. FAQ Without Examination
5
Tennessee Board of Law Examiners. Forms for Application for Admission Without Examination
6
Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts. Tennessee Supreme Court Rule 6 – Admission of Attorneys
7
Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts. Instructions for Comity Applicants to be Admitted to the Tennessee Bar
8
Board of Professional Responsibility of the Supreme Court of Tennessee. Pro Hac Vice Attorneys
9
Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts. Rule 21 – Rule for Mandatory Continuing Legal Education
10
Tennessee Department of Revenue. Professional Privilege Tax
11
Tennessee Board of Law Examiners. Transferred UBE Score – How to Apply
12
Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts. Rule 19 – Appearance Pro Hac Vice in Proceedings
13
Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts. Rule 7 Licensing of Attorneys – Section 10.06