Tennessee Code Annotated

Tenn. Code Ann. § 17-2-110 (2026)

Special judge assigned by chief justice upon certification

✓ current as of May 2026

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(a) When any chancellor or circuit, criminal or appellate judge is, for any reason, unable to try the docket in any court of the chancellor's or judge's division or circuit, the chancellor or judge shall certify to the chief justice of the supreme court the fact of the inability, with a request that the chief justice assign some other chancellor, circuit, criminal or appellate judge to hear the case or cases that the chancellor or judge is unable to hear and decide.

(b) It is the duty of the chief justice to designate some other chancellor or circuit or criminal judge who is not or will not be engaged in hearing causes in that chancellor's or judge's own division or circuit to repair to the place where the case or cases mentioned in subsection (a) are to be heard, and hear and decide the case or cases in all respects as if the chancellor or judge were the duly elected judge of that division or circuit.

(c) It shall be no objection to the authority of the assigned chancellor or judge that the regular chancellor or judge is engaged in the hearing of causes in the same or another county of the same division or circuit.

Acts 1919, ch. 166, § 1; Shan. Supp., § 5917a3; Code 1932, § 9929; T.C.A. (orig. ed.), § 17-216; Acts 1987, ch. 65, § 2.

Notes of Decisions

Cited in 5 cases (2 in the last 5 years), 1993–2025 · leading case: Hooker v. Haslam, 393 S.W.3d 156 (Tenn. 2012).

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Hooker v. Haslam, 393 S.W.3d 156 (Tenn. 2012). · cites it 2× “Hooker sought recusal based on alleged conflicts of interest and challenged the authority of the Chief Justice to appoint replacement judges, the Supreme Court considered the provisions of Tennessee Code Annotated section 17-2-104 (2009) (enabling the Governor to appoint supreme…”

Wilson v. Wilson, 877 S.W.2d 271 (Tenn. Ct. App. 1993). · cites it 2× “The appellant challenges the competency of the Trial Judge to hear the contempt charges, and in support of his argument points to T.C.A. § 17-2-110(a), which provides: “when any chancellor or circuit, criminal or appellate judge shall, for any reason, be unable to try the docket…”

Hooker v. Thompson (Tenn. 1999). · cites it 8× “We interpret the reference to “appellate judge[s]” in Tenn. Code Ann. § 17-2-110 (a) to include judges of the Supreme Court.”

John Allen Hessmer v. State of Tennessee (Tenn. Crim. App. 2025). · cites it 2× “See Tenn. Code Ann. § 17-2-110 ; Tenn. Sup. Ct.”

Benjamin Mccurry v. Agness Mccurry (Tenn. Ct. App. 2025). “6 Defendant also relies, in part, on Tennessee Code Annotated § 17-2-110 but that statute also has no relevance to the matter at issue.”

— Tenn. Code Ann. § 17-2-110(a) — 2 cases

Wilson v. Wilson, 877 S.W.2d 271 (Tenn. Ct. App. 1993). “The appellant challenges the competency of the Trial Judge to hear the contempt charges, and in support of his argument points to T.C.A. § 17-2-110(a), which provides: “when any chancellor or circuit, criminal or appellate judge shall, for any reason, be unable to try the docket…”

Hooker v. Thompson (Tenn. 1999). “We interpret the reference to “appellate judge[s]” in Tenn. Code Ann. § 17-2-110 (a) to include judges of the Supreme Court.”

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