Tennessee Code Annotated
Tenn. Code Ann. § 29-18-102 (2026)
Forcible entry and detainer defined - Where action does not lie
✓ current as of May 2026
- (a) A forcible entry and detainer is where a person, by force or with weapons, or by breaking open the doors, windows, or other parts of the house, whether any person be in it or not, or by any kind of violence whatsoever, enters upon land, tenement, or possession, in the occupation of another, and detains and holds the same; or by threatening to kill, maim, or beat the party in possession; or by such words, circumstances, or actions, as have a natural tendency to excite fear or apprehension of danger; or by putting out of doors or carrying away the goods of the party in possession; or by entering peaceably and then turning or keeping the party out of possession by force or threat or other circumstances of terror.
- (b) No action for forcible entry and detainer shall lie against any tenant who has paid all rent due for current occupancy of the premises and who is not in violation of any law nor otherwise in breach of the tenant's written lease, but this subsection (b) shall not apply in any manner to farm property, nor shall this subsection (b) be construed to alter or amend any valid lease agreement in effect on May 31, 1979.
Code 1858, § 3342 (deriv. Acts 1821, ch. 14, § 2); Shan., § 5091; Code 1932, § 9245; Acts 1979, ch. 421, §§ 1-3; T.C.A. (orig. ed.), § 23-1602.
Notes of Decisions
Cited in 7
cases, 1988–2019 · leading case: Morrison v. Smith, 757 S.W.2d 678 (Tenn. Ct. App. 1988).
Morrison v. Smith, 757 S.W.2d 678 (Tenn. Ct. App. 1988). “If the release of noxious fumes or beams of light onto the lands of another cannot be considered a trespass, we cannot conceive that the absence of electricity or water can be considered as such either.”
Lewis v. Muchmore, 26 S.W.3d 632 (Tenn. Ct. App. 2000). “T.C.A. § 29-18-102(a) defines forcible entry and detainer as follows: A forcible entry and detainer is where a person, by force or with weapons, or by breaking open the doors, windows, or other parts of the house, whether any person be in it or not, or by any kind of violence…”
Newport Hous. Auth. v. Ballard, 839 S.W.2d 86 (Tenn. 1992). “§ 29-18-103 as where a person enters lawfully or peaceably, and holds unlawfully, by any of the means enumerated in T.C.A. § 29-18-102. Unlawful detainer is defined in T.”
John Wesley Sullivan v. Brenda Kreiling (Tenn. Ct. App. 2019). “Sullivan, and the right to possession has now terminated because of non- payment of rent .”
Self Help Ventures Fund v. Glenna Robilio (Tenn. Ct. App. 2010). “not less than 30 days from the date the notice is given to Borrower, by which the default must be cured; and (d) that failure to cure the default on or before the date specified in the 5 “Although FED proceedings are considered one type of action, the Tennessee Code identifies…”
Fed. Nat'l Mortg. Ass'n v. Glenna Robilio (Tenn. Ct. App. 2008). “Although FNMA focuses on the procedural shortcomings, 3 Although FED proceedings are considered one type of action, the Tennessee Code identifies separate bases for the recovery of real property by summary proceeding: forcible entry and detainer, Tenn. Code Ann. § 29-18-102…”
CitiFinancial Mortg. Co., Inc. v. Augustus Beasley (Tenn. Ct. App. 2007). “Under the facts of this unlawful detainer action, the right to immediate possession requires (1) the plaintiff’s (constructive) possession and (2) the plaintiff’s subsequent loss of 8 Although FED proceedings are considered one type of action, the Tennessee Code identifies…”
— Tenn. Code Ann. § 29-18-102(a) — 1 case
Lewis v. Muchmore, 26 S.W.3d 632 (Tenn. Ct. App. 2000). “T.C.A. § 29-18-102(a) defines forcible entry and detainer as follows: A forcible entry and detainer is where a person, by force or with weapons, or by breaking open the doors, windows, or other parts of the house, whether any person be in it or not, or by any kind of violence…”
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