2021 Changes to TRCP and TRAP Family Lawyers Need to Know

Changes to TRCP and TRAP Effective July 1, 2021 that Family Law Practitioners Need to Know

by: Kate Anderson

2021 Changes to TRCP and TRAP Family Lawyers Need to Know by Kate Anderson

A number of amendments to the Tennessee Rules of Civil Procedure and the Tennessee Rules of Appellate Procedure are set to go into effect on July 1, 2021, and there are a few of these which Family Practitioners should be aware.

While appearing to acknowledge that email is a common, if not the preferred form of communication of many attorneys, TRCP Rule 11.01 Signature, has been amended so that every pleading, motion and other paper signed by an attorney shall include, in addition to the signer’s name, address, and telephone number, their email address.

The amended rule[1] states that:

Each paper shall state, to the extent available, the signer’s address, telephone number, e-mail address, and the Tennessee Board of Professional Responsibility number.

It is important to note, however, that the requirement to include the attorney’s email address in their signature itself is not considered consent to filing or service by email.

The Tennessee Rules of Appellate Procedure have also been amended in ways that may be relevant to Family Law practitioners.

TRAP Rule 9 Interlocutory Appeal by Permission From the Trial Court has also been amended.  Rule 9(b), Procedure in the Trial Court, is amended to require that the trial court address with greater specificity the issue or issues that are certified for appeal. Specifically, the amended statute states, in pertinent part:

When the trial court is of the opinion that an order, not appealable as of right, is nonetheless appealable, the trial court shall state in writing the specific issue or issues the court is certifying for appeal and the reasons for its opinion.

The word “thereupon” was also removed from the last section of the rule, as it was “surplusage”.

TRAP Rule 20, Filing and Service of Papers, subsection (a) was also amended, so that proof of timely filing was expanded to include the United States Postal Service services with computer tracking.  The statute previously only allowed for delivery with computer tracking through commercial delivery services.

The new amended statute reads as follows:

• Papers required or permitted to be filed in the appellate court shall be filed with the clerk.  Filing shall not be timely filed unless the papers are received by the clerk within the time fixed for filing or mailed to the office of the clerk by certified return receipt mail or registered return receipt mail within the time fixed for filing.  Filing will also be timely filed if placed with a commercial delivery services, having computer tracking capacity, for delivery with computer tracking, either through a commercial delivery service or the United States Postal Service, with the time fixed for filing.

While these are arguably small changes, they should be helpful to both the practical, and more substantive elements, of the practice of law for Family Law Practitioners.

[1] Additions are noted in bold and underlined font, while deletions are noted with strikethrough font.

Thank you, Kate Anderson

Kate Anderson, Associate Attorney, Miles Mason Family Law Group, PLC