(a) Service being made in any of the modes provided for in this part, the defendant shall appear at the proper time, and make due return of the writ, and answer the petition, if required.

Terms Used In Tennessee Code 29-21-116

  • Answer: The formal written statement by a defendant responding to a civil complaint and setting forth the grounds for defense.
  • Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
  • Person: includes a corporation, firm, company or association. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
  • Plaintiff: The person who files the complaint in a civil lawsuit.
  • signed: includes a mark, the name being written near the mark and witnessed, or any other symbol or methodology executed or adopted by a party with intention to authenticate a writing or record, regardless of being witnessed. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
  • State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the several territories of the United States. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
  • Writ: A formal written command, issued from the court, requiring the performance of a specific act.
  • written: includes printing, typewriting, engraving, lithography, and any other mode of representing words and letters. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
(b) The person served with the writ shall state in the return, plainly and unequivocally:

(1) Whether the person then has, or at any time has had, the plantiff in the person’s control or restraint, and, if so, the authority and cause thereof, setting out the same fully;
(2) If the party is detained under a writ, warrant, or other written authority, a copy thereof shall be annexed to the return, and the original shall be produced and exhibited to the court or judge, if required; and
(3) If the person on whom the writ has been served, has had the plaintiff in the person’s custody or power or under the person’s restraint, at any time before or after the date of the writ, but has transferred the plaintiff to another person, that person shall state the facts explicitly, and to whom, at what time, for what cause, and by what authority such transfer was made.
(c) The return shall be signed by the person making it, and verified by the oath; unless the person is a sworn public officer, and makes the return in an official capacity.
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