(a) Documents, materials, or information in the department‘s control or possession that are furnished by a licensee, or an employee or agent acting on behalf of the licensee, pursuant to § 56-2-1004(9) or § 56-2-1006(b), or that are obtained by the commissioner in connection with an investigation or examination pursuant to § 56-2-1007:
Terms Used In Tennessee Code 56-2-1008
Commissioner: means the commissioner of commerce and insurance, or the commissioner's designee. See Tennessee Code 56-2-1003
Discovery: Lawyers' examination, before trial, of facts and documents in possession of the opponents to help the lawyers prepare for trial.
Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
Foreign: when used without limitation, includes all companies formed by authority of any other state or government. See Tennessee Code 56-1-102
Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
Person: means an individual or non-governmental entity, including a sole proprietorship, corporation, limited liability company, partnership, trust, religious organization, association, nonprofit organization described in §. See Tennessee Code 56-2-1003
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
Subpoena: A command to a witness to appear and give testimony.
Testify: Answer questions in court.
(1) Are confidential and not open for inspection by members of the public under title 10, chapter 7 or § 56-1-602; and(2) Are not subject to subpoena, subject to discovery, or admissible in evidence in a private civil action, except that the commissioner may use the documents, materials, or information in the furtherance of regulatory or legal action by the commissioner.(b) The commissioner, or a person who received documents, materials, or information while acting under the authority of the commissioner, is not permitted or required to testify in a private civil action concerning documents, materials, or information made confidential under subsection (a).(c) Notwithstanding subsection (a), to assist in the commissioner’s duties under this part, the commissioner may:
(1) Share documents, materials, or information made confidential under subsection (a) with other state, federal, or international regulatory agencies or law enforcement authorities, the national association of insurance commissioners or its affiliates or subsidiaries, or a third-party consultant or vendor of the department, as long as the recipient agrees in writing to maintain the confidential nature of the documents, materials, or information;(2) Receive documents, materials, or information, including otherwise confidential documents, materials, or information, from the national association of insurance commissioners or its affiliates or subsidiaries, or from regulatory or law enforcement officials of other foreign or domestic jurisdictions, and the commissioner must maintain as confidential any document, material, or information received with notice or the understanding that it is confidential under the laws of the source jurisdiction; and(3) Enter into agreements governing sharing and use of documents, materials, or information consistent with this subsection (c).(d) A waiver of an applicable privilege or confidentiality does not occur as a result of the disclosure of documents, materials, or information by or to the commissioner under subsection (c).(e) This part does not prohibit the commissioner from releasing final, adjudicated actions open to public inspection under title 10, chapter 7 or § 56-1-602 to a database or other clearinghouse service maintained by the national association of insurance commissioners or its affiliates or subsidiaries.
