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~tate of ijtennessee
PUBLIC CHAPTER NO. 90
HOUSE BILL NO. 216
By Representatives Rudd, Russell, Lamberth, Towns, Todd, Eldridge, Hardaway,
McCalmon, Sparks, Vital
Substituted for: Senate Bill No. 292
By Senator Bailey
AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 29 and Title 66, relative to real
property.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE:
SECTION 1. Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 29, Chapter 18, Part 1, is amended by
adding the following new section:
(a) As used in this section, "immediate family member" means a spouse, parent,
sibling, or child.
(b) The intent of this section is to quickly restore possession of commercial real
property to the lawful owner of the property when the property is being unlawfully
occupied and to thereby preserve property rights while limiting the opportunity for
criminal activity.
(c) Notwithstanding this chapter to the contrary, a property owner, or the property
owner's authorized agent, may request from the sheriff of the county in which the
property is located the immediate removal of any person unlawfully occupying a
commercial property pursuant to this section if the following conditions are met:
(1) The requesting person is the property owner or authorized agent of
the property owner;
(2) The real property that is being occupied is a commercial property,
including a vacant lot that is zoned for commercial use;
(3) An unauthorized person has unlawfully entered and remains or
continues to occupy the property owner's property;
(4) The real property was not open to members of the public at the time
the unauthorized person entered;
(5) The property owner has directed the unauthorized person to leave the
property;
(6) The unauthorized person is not a current or former tenant pursuant to
a written or oral rental agreement authorized by the property owner;
(7) The unauthorized person is not an immediate family member of the
property owner; and
(8) There is no pending litigation related to the real property between the
property owner and any known unauthorized person.
(d) To request the immediate removal of an unlawful occupant of a commercial
property, the property owner, or the property owner's authorized agent, must submit a
complaint by presenting a completed and verified Complaint to Remove Persons
Unlawfully Occupying Commercial Real Property to the sheriff of the county in which the
real property is located. The submitted complaint must be substantially in the following
form:
HB216
COMPLAINT TO REMOVE PERSONS UNLAWFULLY OCCUPYING COMMERCIAL REAL
PROPERTY
I, _ _ _ _, the owner or authorized agent of the owner of the real property located
at _ _ _ _, declare under the penalty of perjury that (initial each box):
1. _ _I am the owner of the real property or the authorized agent of the owner
of the real property.
2. _ _I purchased the property on _ _ __
3. _ _The real property is a commercial property.
4. _ _An unauthorized person or persons have unlawfully entered and are
remaining on or occupying unlawfully the real property.
5. _ _The real property was not open to members of the public at the time the
unauthorized person or persons entered.
6. _ _I have directed the unauthorized person or persons to leave the real
property, but they have not done so.
7. _ _The person or persons are not current or former tenants pursuant to any
valid lease authorized by the property owner, and any lease that may be produced by an
occupant is fraudulent.
8. _ _The unauthorized person or persons sought to be removed are not an
owner or a co-owner of the property and have not been listed on the title to the property
unless the person or persons have engaged in title fraud.
9. _ _The unauthorized person or persons are not immediate family members
of the property owner.
10. _ _There is no litigation related to the real property pending between the
property owner and any person sought to be removed.
11. _ _I understand that a person or persons removed from the property
pursuant to this procedure may bring a cause of action against me for any false
statements made in this complaint, or for wrongfully using this procedure, and that as a
result of such action, I may be held liable for actual damages, penalties, costs, and
reasonable attorney fees.
12. _ _I am requesting the sheriff to immediately remove the unauthorized
person or persons from the commercial property.
13. _ _A copy of my valid government-issued identification is attached, or I am
an agent of the property owner and documents evidencing my authority to act on the
property owner's behalf are attached.
I HAVE READ EVERY STATEMENT MADE IN THIS PETITION AND EACH
STATEMENT IS TRUE AND CORRECT. I UNDERSTAND THAT THE STATEMENTS
MADE IN THIS PETITION ARE BEING MADE UNDER PENALTY OF PERJURY,
PUNISHABLE AS PROVIDED IN TENNESSEE CODE ANNOTATED, SECTION 39-16-
702.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ (Signature of Property Owner or Agent of Owner)
(e)
(1) Upon receipt of the complaint, the sheriff shall verify that the person
submitting the complaint is the record owner of the real property, or the
authorized agent of the owner, and appears otherwise entitled to relief under this
section. If verified, the sheriff shall, without delay, serve a notice to immediately
vacate on all the unlawful occupants and shall put the owner in possession of the
real property. Service may be accomplished by hand delivery of the notice to an
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HB216
occupant or by posting the notice on the front door or entrance of the commercial
property.
(2) The sheriff shall attempt to verify the identities of all persons
occupying the commercial property and note the identities on the return of
service. If appropriate, the sheriff may arrest any person found in the commercial
property for trespass, outstanding warrants, or any other legal cause.
(f)
(1) The sheriff is entitled to the same fee for service of the notice to
immediately vacate as if the sheriff were serving a writ of possession under § 29-
15-114.
(2) After the sheriff serves the notice to immediately vacate, the property
owner, or authorized agent, may request that the sheriff stand by to keep the
peace while the property owner, or agent of the owner, changes the locks and
removes the personal property of the unlawful occupants from the commercial
property to or near the property line. When such a request is made, the sheriff
may charge a reasonable hourly rate, and the person requesting the sheriff to
stand by and keep the peace is responsible for paying the reasonable hourly rate
set by the sheriff.
(3) The sheriff is not liable to the unlawful occupant or any other party for
loss, destruction, or damage of property resulting from actions taken pursuant to
this section.
(4) The property owner, or the property owner's authorized agent, is not
liable to an unlawful occupant or any other party for the loss, destruction, or
damage to the personal property resulting from actions taken pursuant to this
section unless the removal was wrongful.
(g)
(1) A person may bring a civil cause of action for wrongful removal under
this section. The court shall expedite the hearing on such a civil cause of action.
(2) A person harmed by a wrongful removal under this section may be
restored to possession of the commercial real property and may recover actual
costs and damages incurred, statutory damages equal to triple the fair market
rent of the commercial property, court costs, and reasonable attorney fees.
(h) This section does not limit the rights of a property owner or limit the authority
of a law enforcement officer to arrest an unlawful occupant for trespassing, vandalism,
theft, or other crimes.
(i) If any conflict exists between title 66, chapter 7, and this section, then this
section controls.
SECTION 2. This act takes effect July 1, 2025, the public welfare requiring it.
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HOUSE BILL NO. 216
PASSED: March 17, 2025
CAMEROlt'SEXTON,SPEAKER
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
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RANDY l t c N A L Lv
SPEAKER OF THE SENATE
M a r ~ APPROVED this 86 8- day of 2025
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BILL LEE, GOVERNOREvery fact on this page links to its source, starting with the official bill record.