Circuit Court for Davidson County, Tennessee Filing Rules

Proposed orders prepared by counsel must be filed with the Clerk within 7 calendar days of the court's ruling.

All pleadings must include a descriptive title reflecting the nature of the pleading.

Agreed orders of dismissal must state whether the case is dismissed with or without prejudice and must assess court costs.

If applying, a permanently agreed parenting plan executed by both parties must be filed with the Court.

To expedite a motion without party agreement, the moving party must file a Motion for Expedited Hearing attaching the underlying motion, E-file a proposed order with a blank date, and explain why Local Rule § 26.03(a) or (b) should be waived.

Opposing counsel must meet face-to-face or by telephone at least 3 business days before trial to exchange witness names and contact information.

Motions to amend a status conference order must be filed within 5 business days; late motions are denied without a hearing.

Respondent must file a Firearms Declaration with the Circuit Court Clerk within 48 hours of issuance of an Order of Protection.

Objections to a proposed order must be communicated to the Court within three calendar days of its submission.

Motions in limine should be filed five days before trial, and in complicated cases a special hearing is scheduled the Friday of the week before trial.

Self-represented litigants and court-appointed fiduciary attorneys are not automatically enrolled for e-service; parties must take special care to ensure effective notice in such cases.

Pretrial motions, except summary judgment motions, must be served on the opposing party with all supporting material at least 14 days before the hearing.

Movant must provide sworn income and expense statement to adverse party by 5:00 p.m. Monday before hearing; non-movant by 12:00 p.m. Thursday before hearing.

I hereby certify that a true and exact copy of the foregoing has been forwarded via U.S. Mail to the (Defendant/Respondent)(Counter-Defendant/Respondent) (opposing party) at (address of opposing attorney or party) on this the _____ day of ________, 20____.

The court's office email address is fourthcircuitwebteam@jisnashville.gov.

Opposed continuance requests must be submitted by email to the Court's Judicial Assistant and/or Courtroom Clerk, copying opposing counsel or the pro se party.

To schedule a judicial settlement conference, contact the Special Master's Office at 880-2555.

All civil-motion scheduling is handled through the Second Circuit Court Law Clerk.

Parties may receive probate-related updates by joining the court’s email list.

First-time continuance requests are liberally granted.

Agreements to continue an OP matter must be presented to and approved by the Court before or at the initial hearing; all parties must be present for continuance requests unless the Court approves otherwise.

The court will not continue a trial set by agreement or without objection due to incomplete discovery, depositions, or other trial preparations.

When a case is continued, the parties must schedule an ADR event between the continued date and the new trial date.

Once a case is set for trial, parties must file a motion for the Court to consider rescheduling the trial.

Discovery material should not be filed with the Clerk unless the court is asked to consider it.

Attorneys must file and email joint proposed jury instructions to the Eighth Circuit Staff Attorney.

The Clerk must electronically file the Domestic Status Conference Order.

The proposed order granting a Motion for Expedited Hearing must be E-filed with the date left blank for the Court to complete.

Personal information may be submitted on sealed Statistical Sheets or Spouse’s Personal Information Forms, which are not open to public inspection.

When a satisfied judgment has unpaid court costs, the Clerk may apply to re-tax costs and must notify the parties of the application and hearing.

Certificate of adoption requires a $30.00 fee, and fee disclosures must be filed before Order to Set.

Motions with arguments expected to exceed one-half hour should be specially scheduled or brought to the court's attention.

Motions in limine must be heard at a pretrial conference scheduled per Section III(A)(ii) before trial; morning-of-trial hearings require exceptional circumstances.

Judicial Settlement Conferences are mandatory in all contested cases, scheduled after a Motion to Set is granted, with the date included in the Order to Set.

A Motion for Default must be filed and granted before securing a final hearing date, and the final hearing cannot be combined with the default motion.

A courtesy copy of any emergency or ex parte request must be emailed to the Court’s Judicial Assistant and/or Courtroom Clerk when it is filed.

Upon filing a TRO, counsel must email a courtesy copy to ronnellgriffin@jisnashville.gov.

A courtesy copy must be brought to the court when a reply is filed late on Wednesday.

Electronic signatures on pleadings, orders, and other court documents filed in Circuit Court must take the format of the original signature.

Exhibits should be printed before trial with an additional copy for the Court; unprinted exhibits may be admitted in original form, but the Court may require a late-filed hard copy within five days of the hearing.

Proposed jury instructions must include the full text of each requested instruction in a Word document.

Every page of a pleading, brief, or memoranda must be numbered.

Facsimile transmissions over 50 pages (including the cover sheet) will not be filed unless authorized by the Court.

Non-agreed proposed jury instructions must be filed and emailed as a separate document.