Tennessee Chancery and Probate Courts

Last updated

Tennessee has 32 judicial districts with a Chancery Court in each district. Some of these 32 districts have legislatively created Probate Courts. [1] If a particular county did not create a special Probate court, the jurisdiction over the probate stays with the Chancery court. [2]

Contents

Tennessee chancery courts

Tennessee's Chancery Courts are courts of equity. [3] Tennessee's Chancery Court was created in the first half of the 19th Century, and remains one of the few distinctly separate courts of equity in the United States. [4] While the Chancery Court and Tennessee's Circuit Court, the court of general civil and criminal jurisdiction, [3] may share a set of procedural rules in each county, there are some distinct rules applying to the separate courts. [5] [6] Parties in the Chancery Court are entitled to have a jury try issues of material fact. [7]

In 2015, Tennessee's Supreme Court created a pilot Business Court. [8] The Davidson County (Nashville) Chancery Court Part III was designated to serve as the Business Court. [9] [10] Chancellor Ellen Hobbs Lyle [11] was the first Business Court judge and sat on the business court into 2019. [12] In 2017, Davidson County Circuit Court Judge Joe Binkley [13] was appointed a Business Court judge. [14] In 2019, Davidson County Chancellor Anne C. Martin [15] was appointed the Business Court judge and remains in that position (as of July 2024). [10] She was appointed as a Business Court Representative to the American Bar Association's Business Law Section in 2023. [16] Tennessee's Administrative Office of the Courts received a grant from the State Justice Institute to work with the National Center for State Courts to develop a curriculum for expanding business courts in Tennessee and elsewhere. [17]

Tennessee probate courts

The Probate Courts are legislatively created courts with jurisdiction over probating wills, estate administration, conservatorships and guardianships. [3] Only two counties, Shelby [18] and Davidson, [19] [20] have Probate Courts. [21] There are only three probate judges in the state. [22] Unless properly designated to another court, probate and estate matters will reside in a Tennessee county’s Chancery Court. [23]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Williamson County, Tennessee</span> County in Tennessee, United States

Williamson County is a county in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 247,726. The county seat is Franklin, and the county is located in Middle Tennessee. The county is named after Hugh Williamson, a North Carolina politician who signed the U.S. Constitution. Williamson County is part of the Nashville-Davidson–Murfreesboro–Franklin, TN Metropolitan Statistical Area. In the 19th century, tobacco and hemp were cultivated here, and planters also raised warm-blooded livestock, including horses and cattle.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hamilton County, Tennessee</span> County in Tennessee, United States

Hamilton County is a county located in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is located in the southern part of East Tennessee on the border with Georgia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 366,207, making it the fourth-most populous county in Tennessee. Its county seat is Chattanooga, located along the Tennessee River. The county was named for Alexander Hamilton, the first secretary of the treasury. Hamilton County is one of 95 counties within Tennessee. Hamilton County is part of the Chattanooga, TN-GA Metropolitan Statistical Area. The county was created on October 25, 1819. Hamilton County expanded to meet the state line with Georgia after absorbing parts of three different counties including Bledsoe, Marion, and Rhea. Part of the traditional Cherokee homeland, the county was created after the Cherokee signed a treaty in 1817 with the United States and ceded land north of the Hiwassee River. In the 21st century, Hamilton County is the eighth-highest income Tennessee location by per capita income ($26,588).

The Superior Court is the state court in the U.S. state of New Jersey, with statewide trial and appellate jurisdiction. The New Jersey Constitution of 1947 establishes the power of the New Jersey courts: under Article Six of the State Constitution, "judicial power shall be vested in a Supreme Court, a Superior Court, and other courts of limited jurisdiction." The Superior Court has three divisions: the Law Division which is the main trial court for cases of civil or criminal law, the Chancery Division, which tries equity law cases, and the Appellate Division, which is the intermediate appellate court in New Jersey. "Appeals may be taken to the Appellate Division of the Superior Court from the law and chancery divisions of the Superior Court and in such other causes as may be provided by law." Each division of the Superior Court is divided into various Parts."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Government of Tennessee</span>

The Government of Tennessee is organized under the provisions of the 1870 Constitution of Tennessee, first adopted in 1796. As set forth by the state constitution, administrative influence in Tennessee is divided among three branches of government: executive, legislative, and judicial.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Circuit Court of Cook County</span> Judicial circuit in Illinois, U.S.

The Circuit Court of Cook County is the largest of the 25 circuit courts in the judiciary of Illinois as well as one of the largest unified court systems in the United States – second only in size to the Superior Court of Los Angeles County since that court merged with other courts in 1998.

Courts of Tennessee include:

The Kentucky Circuit Courts are the state courts of general jurisdiction in the U.S. state of Kentucky.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wyoming District Courts</span> State trial courts in Wyoming, US

Wyoming District Courts are the state trial courts of general jurisdiction in Wyoming.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">High Court of Justice</span> One of the Senior Courts of England and Wales

The High Court of Justice in London, known properly as His Majesty's High Court of Justice in England, together with the Court of Appeal and the Crown Court, are the Senior Courts of England and Wales. Its name is abbreviated as EWHC for legal citation purposes.

The Superior Court is North Carolina's general jurisdiction trial court. It was established in 1777 and is North Carolina's oldest court.

Business courts, sometimes referred to as commercial courts, are specialized courts for legal cases involving commercial law, internal business disputes, and other matters affecting businesses. In the US, they are trial courts that primarily or exclusively adjudicate internal business disputes and/or commercial litigation between businesses, heard before specialist judges assigned to these courts. Commercial courts outside the United States may have broader or narrower jurisdiction than state trial level business and commercial courts within the United States, for example patent or admiralty jurisdiction; and jurisdiction may vary between countries. Business courts may be further specialized, as in those that decide technology disputes and those that weigh appeals. Alternative dispute resolution and arbitration have connections to business courts.

The judiciary of Michigan is defined under the Michigan Constitution, law, and regulations as part of the Government of Michigan. The court system consists of the Michigan Supreme Court, the Michigan Court of Appeals as the intermediate appellate court, the circuit courts and district courts as the two primary trial courts, and several administrative courts and specialized courts. The Supreme Court administers all the courts. The Michigan Supreme Court consists of seven members who are elected on non-partisan ballots for staggered eight-year terms, while state appellate court judges are elected to terms of six years and vacancies are filled by an appointment by the governor, and circuit court and district court judges are elected to terms of six years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Waverly D. Crenshaw Jr.</span> American judge (born 1956)

Waverly David Crenshaw Jr. is a United States federal judge of the United States District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee.

Roger A. Page is an American lawyer who served as a justice of the Tennessee Supreme Court from 2016 to 2024. He was appointed to the court by Governor Bill Haslam.

Jonathan Thomas Skrmetti is an American attorney and public official. He currently serves as the 28th Attorney General and Reporter for the state of Tennessee.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michigan Circuit Courts</span>

Circuit courts are the trial courts with the broadest powers in Michigan. In Michigan, circuit courts handle all felony criminal cases that could result in confinement to prison. They also deal with all civil cases for claims in excess of $25,000.00. There are 57 circuit courts in the state of Michigan. Judges are elected for six-year terms. In Michigan, circuit courts are divided into two divisions: general division and family division.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fairfax Circuit Court</span> Judicial court in Fairfax, Virginia

The Fairfax Circuit Court of the 19th Judicial Circuit, is a court of general jurisdiction, serving the County and City of Fairfax, Virginia, in the United States. It is the largest trial court in Virginia and handles both civil and criminal cases. The Court comprises fifteen full-time judges.

Mary Louise Wagner is an American lawyer who has served as a justice of the Tennessee Supreme Court since 2024.

References

  1. ↑ "Circuit, Criminal, Chancery & Business Courts | Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts". www.tncourts.gov. Retrieved 2024-05-26.
  2. ↑ Probate Committee of the Tennessee Clerks of Court Conference, Probate Guide (September 2012)
  3. 1 2 3 "About the Trial Courts | Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts". www.tncourts.gov. Retrieved 2024-05-26.
  4. ↑ Fowler, Russell (February 2012). "A History of Chancery and its Equity". Tennessee Bar Journal. 48 (2).
  5. ↑ "Local Rules – Davidson County Courts of Record – Circuit Court Clerk" . Retrieved 2024-05-26.
  6. ↑ "Local Rules of Practice | Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts". www.tncourts.gov. Retrieved 2024-05-26.
  7. ↑ "Tennessee Code 21-1-103 – Right to trial by jury » LawServer". www.lawserver.com. Retrieved 2024-05-26.
  8. ↑ "Business Court Docket | Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts". www.tncourts.gov. Retrieved 2024-05-26.
  9. ↑ Lee, Chief Justice Sharon G. (March 16, 2015). "In the Supreme Court of Tennessee, No. ADM2015-00467, Order Establishing the Davidson County Business Court Pilot Project" (PDF).
  10. 1 2 "Business Court Pilot Project – Chancery Clerk and Master of Metropolitan Nashville & Davidson County" . Retrieved 2024-05-26.
  11. ↑ "Ellen Lyle, JAMS Mediator and Arbitrator". www.jamsadr.com. Retrieved 2024-05-30.
  12. ↑ Lyle, Chanceller Ellen Hobbs (January 31, 2019). "Victor Poteet, et al. v. David Brown Levy, et al., In the Chancery Court for the State of Tennessee, Twentieth Judicial District, Davidson County, No. 15-1264-BC" (PDF).
  13. ↑ "Judge Joe Binkley, Jr. – Trial Courts of Metropolitan Nashville & Davidson County" . Retrieved 2024-05-30.
  14. ↑ "Tennessee Supreme Court Endorses Recommendations of the Statewide Business Court Docket Advisory Commission | Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts". www.tncourts.gov. Retrieved 2024-05-26.
  15. ↑ "Chancellor Anne C. Martin – Trial Courts of Metropolitan Nashville & Davidson County" . Retrieved 2024-05-30.
  16. ↑ "Chancellor Martin Appointed Business Court Representative to ABA Business Law Section | Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts". www.tncourts.gov. Retrieved 2024-05-26.
  17. ↑ "Tennessee Business Court Docket Pilot Project Awarded Grant to Create Nationwide Curriculum | Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts". tncourts.gov. Retrieved 2024-05-26.
  18. ↑ "Probate Court | Shelby County, TN - Official Website". www.shelbycountytn.gov. Retrieved 2024-05-30.
  19. ↑ "Probate Court Clerk – Circuit Court Clerk" . Retrieved 2024-05-30.
  20. ↑ "Circuit Court History – Trial Courts of Metropolitan Nashville & Davidson County" . Retrieved 2024-05-30.
  21. ↑ "The Court System in Tennessee". Justice For All TN. Retrieved 2024-05-30.
  22. ↑ "Court System | Williamson County, TN - Official Site". www.williamsoncounty-tn.gov. Retrieved 2024-05-30.
  23. ↑ "Probate Court | UT County Technical Assistance Service". www.ctas.tennessee.edu. Retrieved 2024-05-30.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.