Tennessee Code Annotated
Tenn. Code Ann. § 29-38-106 (2026)
Persons allowed to bring an action for damages - Persons against whom damages may be sought - What damages may be sought
✓ current as of May 2026
- (a) One (1) or more of the following persons may bring an action for damages caused by an individual's use of an illegal drug:
- (1) A parent, legal guardian, child, spouse, or sibling of the individual drug user;
- (2) An individual who was exposed to an illegal drug in utero;
- (3) An employer of the individual drug user;
- (4) A medical facility, insurer, governmental entity, employer, or other entity that funds a drug treatment program or employee assistance program for the individual drug user, or that otherwise expended money on behalf of the individual drug user; or
- (5) A person injured as a result of the willful, reckless, or negligent actions of an individual drug user.
- (b) A person entitled to bring an action under this section may seek damages from one (1) or more of the following:
- (1) A person who knowingly distributed, or knowingly participated in the chain of distribution of, an illegal drug that was actually used by the individual drug user;
- (2) A person who knowingly participated in the illegal drug market, if:
- (A) The place of illegal drug activity by the individual drug user is within the illegal drug market target community of the defendant;
- (B) The defendant's participation in the illegal drug market was connected with the same type of illegal drug used by the individual drug user; and
- (C) The defendant participated in the illegal drug market at any time during the individual drug user's period of illegal drug use.
- (c) A person entitled to bring an action under this section may recover all of the following damages:
- (1) Economic damages, including, but not limited to, the cost of treatment and rehabilitation, medical expenses, loss of economic or educational potential, loss of productivity, absenteeism, support expenses, accidents or injury, and any other pecuniary loss proximately caused by the illegal drug use;
- (2) Noneconomic damages, including, but not limited to, physical and emotional pain, suffering, physical impairment, emotional distress, mental anguish, disfigurement, loss of enjoyment, loss of companionship, services and consortium, and other nonpecuniary losses proximately caused by an individual's use of an illegal drug;
- (3) Exemplary damages;
- (4) Reasonable attorney fees; and
- (5) Costs of suit, including, but not limited to, reasonable expenses for expert testimony.
Acts 2005, ch. 377, § 6.
Notes of Decisions
Cited in 4
cases (1 in the last 5 years), 2019–2026 · leading case: Jared Effler v. Purdue Pharma L.P. (Tenn. 2020).
Jared Effler v. Purdue Pharma L.P. (Tenn. 2020). “Tenn. Code Ann. § 29-38-106 (b)(1); see also, e.”
Dunaway v. Purdue Pharma L.P., 391 F. Supp. 3d 802 (2019). “Tenn. Code Ann. § 29-38-106 (b). " 'Illegal drug market' means the support system of illegal drug related operations, from production to retail sales, through which an illegal drug reaches the user.”
Jared Effler v. Purdue Pharma L.P. (2019). “Tenn. Code Ann. § 29-38-106 (a) (2012). Indeed, district attorneys are not mentioned.”
Dundon (E.D. Pa. 2026). “The claim sought damages under the Drug Dealer Liability Act, Tenn. Code Ann. § 29-38-106 (a)(2), and for statutory and common law nuisance.”
— Tenn. Code Ann. § 29-38-106(a) — 1 case
Jared Effler v. Purdue Pharma L.P. (Tenn. 2020). “Tenn. Code Ann. § 29-38-106 (b)(1); see also, e.”
— Tenn. Code Ann. § 29-38-106(c) — 1 case
Jared Effler v. Purdue Pharma L.P. (Tenn. 2020). “Tenn. Code Ann. § 29-38-106 (b)(1); see also, e.”
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