--- name: tn-draft-note description: > This skill should be used to scaffold a Tennessee Notice of Hearing — the document that places a motion on the court's calendar — and the related party-filed notices in Tennessee civil practice. Triggers include "draft a Tennessee notice of hearing", "set my motion for hearing in Tennessee", "Notice of Hearing for a Chancery motion", "draft a notice to set a motion on the docket", "draft a notice of filing Tennessee", "notice of voluntary dismissal Tennessee", "notice of change of address". The scheduling document in Tennessee is a Notice of Hearing (NOT a Note for Motion Docket or Notice of Motion). Note that many Circuit and Chancery courts require the filer to obtain or coordinate a hearing date with the judge's office or docket clerk before noticing the motion — this varies by county. Composes with `tn-statewide-format` for the caption, `tn-schedule-hearing` for obtaining the date, and `tn-draft-motion` for the underlying motion. version: 0.1.0 --- # Draft a Tennessee Notice of Hearing > **NOT LEGAL ADVICE.** This skill scaffolds a notice document. Verify > the filing court's local rules and the assigned judge's standing > orders — especially how hearing dates are obtained — before filing. In Tennessee civil practice the scheduling document that places a motion on the court's calendar is the **Notice of Hearing**. It tells all parties when and where the court will hear a previously filed motion. The Notice of Hearing serves the motion's hearing date under **Tenn. R. Civ. P. 5** and is filed in the underlying Circuit or Chancery case. > **General Sessions is different.** General Sessions practice is > informal and the Tennessee Rules of Civil Procedure generally do not > apply there. A General Sessions matter is set by a return date / court > date assigned when the civil warrant issues, not by a party-filed > Notice of Hearing. See `tn-general-sessions`. ## Coordinate the date first — this varies by county Many Tennessee Circuit and Chancery courts require the filer to **obtain or coordinate a hearing date** from the judge's office, the docket clerk, or the Clerk & Master (in Chancery) **before** serving a Notice of Hearing — you cannot simply pick a date and notice it. Other courts run a standing motion docket on set days where motions are heard without an individually assigned time. Practice differs by county and by judge. - **Check the local rules** of the filing court (indexed on the AOC "Local Rules of Practice" page at tncourts.gov) and the assigned judge's standing orders. - **Use `tn-schedule-hearing`** for the mechanics of contacting the judge's office / docket clerk to secure a date. - Confirm any **minimum-notice** requirement — for a summary-judgment motion under Tenn. R. Civ. P. 56.04, the motion must be served **at least 30 days before the hearing**; other motions may carry a shorter local-rule notice period. Use `tn-deadlines` to compute the date and any Rule 6.05 mail add-on. ## Standard Notice of Hearing scaffold ``` [Caption — see tn-statewide-format] NOTICE OF HEARING TO ALL PARTIES AND THEIR COUNSEL OF RECORD: PLEASE TAKE NOTICE that [Movant]'s [Motion Title], filed [date], will be brought on for hearing before the Honorable [Judge / Chancellor Name] as follows: Date: [Date] Time: [Time] Place: [Courtroom / Part, courthouse name, street address, city, Tennessee] [OR remote appearance — platform and connection details, if permitted by the court] Division: [Circuit / Chancery Part or Division number] This matter has been [set / assigned a hearing date] by [the Court / the judge's office / the docket clerk] in accordance with the local rules of [County] County. Counsel and self-represented parties should confirm the appearance method (in person / remote) with the court before the hearing date. [Signature block — see tn-statewide-format] CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE [Date, method, recipients — per tn-statewide-format and Rule 5] ``` ## Other party-filed notices | Notice | Filer | Purpose | Authority | |--------|-------|---------|-----------| | Notice of Hearing | Movant | Sets a filed motion for hearing | Tenn. R. Civ. P. 5 + local rules | | Notice of Filing | Filer | Cover notice accompanying a filed document or exhibit | local practice | | Notice of Voluntary Dismissal | Plaintiff | Voluntary dismissal under Tenn. R. Civ. P. 41.01 | Tenn. R. Civ. P. 41.01 | | Notice of Appeal (Sessions → Circuit) | Appealing party | Triggers de novo appeal within 10 days | Tenn. Code Ann. § 27-5-108 | | Notice of Change of Address | Party / counsel | Updates the service address of record | Tenn. R. Civ. P. 5 | ### Notice of Voluntary Dismissal — Tenn. R. Civ. P. 41.01 A plaintiff generally may take a **voluntary nonsuit** (dismissal without prejudice) by filing a written notice of dismissal, subject to the limits in Rule 41.01 (e.g., once a motion for summary judgment is pending, or where a counterclaim has been pleaded that cannot remain pending for independent adjudication). A **second** voluntary dismissal of a claim based on or including the same claim may operate as an adjudication on the merits. Verify the current rule text and track any prior dismissals before filing. ``` [Caption — see tn-statewide-format] NOTICE OF VOLUNTARY DISMISSAL (TENN. R. CIV. P. 41.01) PLEASE TAKE NOTICE that Plaintiff hereby voluntarily dismisses this action [without prejudice], pursuant to Tenn. R. Civ. P. 41.01. [Plaintiff signature block] ``` ### General Sessions de novo appeal notice To appeal a General Sessions judgment to Circuit Court for trial **de novo**, the appealing party must perfect the appeal within **10 days** of entry of the judgment under Tenn. Code Ann. § 27-5-108 (uniform statewide 10-day period; perfecting also involves the appeal bond/cost requirements with the Sessions clerk — confirm the clerk's exact procedure). See `tn-post-judgment` and `tn-general-sessions`. ## Filing checklist - [ ] Hearing date obtained / coordinated per the court's procedure (`tn-schedule-hearing`) - [ ] Caption matches the assigned court (Circuit / Chancery) and county (`tn-statewide-format`) - [ ] Title `NOTICE OF HEARING` in ALL CAPS, centered - [ ] Date, time, place, division, and appearance method stated - [ ] Minimum-notice / 30-day Rule 56.04 requirement satisfied (`tn-deadlines`) - [ ] Certificate of Service complete (Rule 5) ## Composition - For format and caption: `tn-statewide-format` - For obtaining the hearing date: `tn-schedule-hearing` - For the underlying motion: `tn-draft-motion` - For the proposed order to bring to the hearing: `tn-draft-order` - For deadline math (30-day Rule 56.04, Rule 6.05 mail add-on): `tn-deadlines` - For the General Sessions forum: `tn-general-sessions` - For the venue overlay: `tn-davidson`, `tn-shelby`, `tn-knox`, `tn-hamilton`, `tn-county-courts` ## References - `references/notice-of-hearing-template.md` — annotated template - `references/notice-of-dismissal-template.md` — Rule 41.01 nonsuit - `references/coordinating-hearing-dates.md` — county-by-county date-setting practice notes