Tennessee § 56-25-701 - Service of process.

§ 56-25-701. Service of process.

Every society authorized to do business in this state shall appoint in writing the commissioner and each successor in the office of commissioner to be its true and lawful attorney upon whom all lawful process in any action or proceeding against it shall be served, and shall agree in the writing that any lawful process against it which is served on the attorney shall be of the same legal force and validity as if served upon the society, and that the authority shall continue in force so long as any liability remains outstanding in this state. Copies of the appointment, certified by the commissioner, shall be deemed sufficient evidence thereof and shall be admitted in evidence with the same force and effect as the original thereof might be admitted. Service shall only be made upon the commissioner, or if absent, upon the person in charge of the commissioner's office. It shall be made in duplicate and shall constitute sufficient service upon the society. When legal process against a society is served upon the commissioner, the commissioner shall forthwith forward one (1) of the duplicate copies by registered mail, prepaid, directed to the secretary or corresponding officer. No such service shall require a society to file its answer, pleading or defense in less than thirty (30) days from the date of mailing the copy of the service to the society. Legal process shall not be served upon a society except in the manner herein provided. At the time of serving any process upon the commissioner, the plaintiff or complainant in the action shall pay to the commissioner a fee of ten dollars ($10.00). Acts 1990, ch. 703, § 1; T.C.A § 56-25-1701 . Code Commission Notes. This section was renumbered from § 56-25-1701 to § 56-25-701 by authority of the Code Commission in 2016. Compiler's Notes. The Code Commission transferred numerous sections in this title to this part, effective upon the 2016 replacement of this volume. See the following parallel reference table for the old and new locations. Old Section New Section 56-25-1701 56-25-701 56-25-1702 56-25-702 56-25-1703 56-25-703 56-25-1704 56-25-704 Cross-References. Certified mail instead of registered mail, § 1-3-111 .