Tennessee Code Annotated

Tenn. Code Ann. § 29-21-110 (2026)

Issuance of writ - Form - Formal defects

✓ current as of May 2026

Find cases: SyfertCases citing this section JustiaTenn. Code CornellLII Search CasesGoogle Scholar

(a) If the petition show a sufficient ground for relief, the writ shall be forthwith allowed, and may be substantially as follows:
State of Tennessee,
To the sheriff, etc. [or to A B, as the case may be]:
____________________ County
You are hereby commanded to have the body of C B, who is alleged to be unlawfully detained by you, before the ______________ court, [or before me, or before E E, Judge, etc., as the case may be], at ______________, on ______________ [or immediately after being served with this writ], to be dealt with according to law, and have you then and there this writ, with a return thereon of your doings in the premises.
This ______________ day of ______________, 20 ____________________. G H, Judge, etc.

(b) The writ of habeas corpus shall not be disobeyed for any defect of form, or misdescription of the plaintiff or defendant, provided enough is stated to show the meaning and intent of the writ.

(c) When the writ is allowed by a court in term, it is issued by the clerk, but in other cases the judge or chancellor issues the writ, signing it officially.

Code 1858, §§ 3727, 3728, 3741; Shan., §§ 5507, 5508, 5521; Code 1932, §§ 9678, 9679, 9691; T.C.A. (orig. ed.), §§ 23-1810 -- 23-1812.

Notes of Decisions

Cited in 5 cases (1 in the last 5 years), 1985–2026 · leading case: Weatherly v. State, 704 S.W.2d 730 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1985).

Sort: Relevance Newest Treatment

Weatherly v. State, 704 S.W.2d 730 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1985). · cites it 2× “T.C.A. § 29-21-110(b), specifically provides that “The writ of habeas corpus shall not be disobeyed for any defect of form,_ provided enough is stated to show the meaning and intent of the writ.”

State of Tennessee v. Maurice Tyrone Flanigan (Tenn. Crim. App. 2026). · cites it 3× “Tenn. Code Ann. § 29-21-110 (2024). The respondent having custody of the defendant must then “appear at the proper time, and make due return of the writ, and answer the petition, if required.”

Roger L. Hickman v. State of Tennessee (Tenn. Crim. App. 2003). · cites it 2× “, Tenn. Code Ann. § 29-21-110 (requiring that the writ be directed to the sheriff or other person having custody of or restraining the person on whose behalf the application is made and commanding the restraining authority to have the body of such person before the court at the…”

Mitchell Tarver v. State of Tennessee (Tenn. Crim. App. 2003). · cites it 2× “Thus, in the instant case the habeas judge should have directed an answer or issuance of writ pursuant to Tennessee Code Annotated section 29-21-110, and proceeded to a hearing to resolve the apparent conflict in the judgment forms and grant or deny relief as appropriate.”

Larry J. Noel v. Joe Easterling, Warden (Tenn. Crim. App. 2010). · cites it 2× “With regard to the summary dismissal, the petitioner contends that the habeas corpus court erred because it failed to “address the issue” of whether the general sessions court lacked authority or jurisdiction to impose the sentence in “direct contravention of Tenn. Code Ann. §…”

— Tenn. Code Ann. § 29-21-110(b) — 1 case

Weatherly v. State, 704 S.W.2d 730 (Tenn. Crim. App. 1985). “T.C.A. § 29-21-110(b), specifically provides that “The writ of habeas corpus shall not be disobeyed for any defect of form,_ provided enough is stated to show the meaning and intent of the writ.”

Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.