Section 3 - Action on Notice; Composition of the Special Three-Judge Panel Trial Court(a) Within fifteen (15) days of the filing of the notice, the presiding judge of the judicial district in which the notice was filed shall file with the clerk of the trial court where the action is pending an order making a written initial determination as to whether the action filed qualifies under the provisions of Section 1 requiring the empaneling of a special three-judge panel.(1) Within five (5) days of the filing of the presiding judge's order, the trial court clerk shall email to the Clerk of the Supreme Court addressed to appellatecourtclerk@tncourts.gov the following documents:(a) the presiding judge's order;(b) the notice referenced in Section 2(b) (along with any attachments thereto); and(c) any responses to the notice referenced in Section 2(d) filed by a party to the litigation.(2) If the presiding judge of the judicial district in which the notice was filed has recused himself or herself from the case, then the presiding judge pro tempore, as described in Rule 11, § (III)(b), shall file the written initial determination as provided in Section 3(a) of this Rule.(3) Upon receipt of the email, the Clerk of the Supreme Court shall file the transmitted documents in the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court has discretion to request additional information from the parties to aid its de novo review of the presiding judge's determination.(4) The Supreme Court makes the final determination as to whether the action qualifies under the provisions of Section 1. If the Supreme Court determines that it does not, the Court shall remand the case to the original trial judge to whom the case was assigned. If the Supreme Court determines that it does, the Court shall then select two (2) trial judges of courts of record to sit with the judge to whom the case was originally assigned as a three-judge panel to hear and decide the case.(b) The special three-judge panel will be composed of: (1) the trial judge of the judicial district to which the case was originally assigned; and (2) the trial judge from each grand division of the state other than the grand division in which the action was originally filed. (c) The Supreme Court shall appoint one of the three judges to serve as the chief judge of the special three-judge panel. (d) Should any member of the three-judge panel be disqualified or otherwise unable to serve on the panel, the Supreme Court shall appoint as a replacement another trial court judge from the same grand division as the judge being replaced, who shall serve by interchange, as provided in Rules 10B and 11 of the Tennessee Supreme Court Rules.Tenn. R. Sup. Ct., r. 54, 3
Adopted by Order filed and effective 7/1/2021; amended by Order filed and effective 9/2/2021; amended by order filed December 16, 2024, effective 12/16/2024.