Tennessee Code Annotated

Tenn. Code Ann. § 41-21-805 (2026)

Affidavit of inability to pay - Requirements

✓ current as of May 2026

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

(a) Any inmate who files a claim with an affidavit of inability to pay costs shall file a separate affidavit with the following information:
- (1) A complete list of every lawsuit or claim previously filed by the inmate, without regard to whether the inmate was incarcerated at the time any claim or action was filed; and
- (2) For each claim or action listed in subsection (a):
  - (A) The operative facts for which relief was sought;
  - (B) The case name, case number and court in which the suit or claim was filed;
  - (C) The legal theory on which the relief sought was based;
  - (D) The identification of each party named in the action; and
  - (E) The final result of the action, including dismissal as frivolous or malicious under this part or otherwise.

(b) If the affidavit filed under this section states that a previous suit was dismissed as frivolous or malicious, the affidavit must state the date of the final order affirming the dismissal.

(c) The affidavit must be accompanied by a current certified copy of the inmate's trust account statement.

Acts 1996, ch. 913, § 1.

Notes of Decisions

Cited in 55 cases (5 in the last 5 years), 1999–2026 · leading case: Sweatt v. Tennessee Dep't of Corr., 99 S.W.3d 112 (Tenn. Ct. App. 2002).

Sort: Relevance Newest Treatment

Sweatt v. Tennessee Dep't of Corr., 99 S.W.3d 112 (Tenn. Ct. App. 2002). · cites it 10× “Sweatt filed an affidavit of indigence with his petition, together with an affidavit pursuant to the requirements of Tenn.Code Ann. § 41-21-805, detailing all the prior lawsuits he had filed.”

Sandy Eugene Womack v. Corr. Corp. Of Am. D/B/A Whiteville Corr. Facility, 448 S.W.3d 362 (Tenn. 2014). · cites it 6× “10 While the affidavit requirement of Tenn.Code Ann. § 41-21-805 remained unchanged, inmates were now “required to pay the full amount of the filing fee” even if they were filing in forma pauperis.”

Williams v. Bell, 37 S.W.3d 477 (Tenn. Ct. App. 2000). · cites it 8× “Williams claims that he furnished the chancery court with the information required by Tenn.Code Ann. § 41-21-805. We have found in the record a single affidavit by Mr.”

Pendleton v. Mills, 73 S.W.3d 115 (Tenn. Ct. App. 2001). · cites it 2× “1995) as he was required to do by Tenn.Code Ann. § 41-21-805(a)(l) (1997). Had Mr.”

Hayes v. State, 341 S.W.3d 293 (Tenn. Ct. App. 2009). · cites it 10× “§ 1997e (1996) and Tenn.Code Ann. § 41-21-805 (1996). We affirm the trial court’s dismissal.”

Davis v. Holland, 31 S.W.3d 574 (Tenn. Ct. App. 2000). · cites it 4× “§ 41-21-805, and include, (1) A complete list of every lawsuit or claim previously filed by the inmate, without regard to whether the inmate was incarcerated at the time any claim or action was filed; and (2) For each claim or action listed in subsection (a): (A) The operative…”

Tyrone Spates v. Tracy Howell & Robert Preston, 420 S.W.3d 776 (Tenn. Ct. App. 2013). · cites it 4× “Spates filed a Tennessee Supreme Court Rule 29 uniform affidavit of indigency, an “Inmate Affidavit,” pursuant to Tennessee Code Annotated Section 41-21-805, and an “Inmate Trust Fund Certification Balance” form pursuant to Tennessee Code Annotated Section 41-21-807.”

Sweatt v. Tennessee Dep't of Corr., 88 S.W.3d 567 (Tenn. Ct. App. 2002). “§ 41-21-805. The courts are authorized to order an inmate who has filed a frivolous or malicious claim to pay filing fees, court costs and other expenses related to that claim, with payment of the obligation to be ac *571 complished by regular , and mandatory withdrawals from…”

Gerald A. Sanford v. Tennessee Dep't Of Corr. (Tenn. Ct. App. 2019). · cites it 29× “See Tenn. Code Ann. § 41-21-805 . Soon after, TDOC and Mr.”

Andre Dotson v. Contemporary Media, Inc., d/b/a The Memphis Flyer, & John Branston (Tenn. Ct. App. 2012). · cites it 43× “Tenn. Code Ann. § 41-21-805 . Because the § 41-21-805 affidavit is only concerned with the inmate’s previous lawsuits and, specifically, with whether there are any outstanding costs associated with the lawsuits, it does not serve the same function as the Rule 29 affidavit.”

Grenda Harmer v. Turney Ctr. Disciplinary Bd. (Tenn. Ct. App. 2016). · cites it 25× “§ 20-12-127 , an affidavit as required by Tenn. Code Ann. § 41-21-805 concerning all previously filed lawsuits, and a certified Six Month Transaction Statement.”

Timothy Roberson v. Cherry Lindamood (Tenn. Ct. App. 2017). · cites it 22× “The trial court dismissed the lawsuit without prejudice based on the inmate’s failure to comply with Tennessee Code Annotated section 41-21-805, which requires inmates wanting to proceed in forma pauperis to submit to the trial court a complete list of every previous lawsuit or…”

Show all 55 citing cases →

— Tenn. Code Ann. § 41-21-805(a) — 1 case

Andre Dotson v. Contemporary Media, Inc., d/b/a The Memphis Flyer, & John Branston (Tenn. Ct. App. 2012). “Tenn. Code Ann. § 41-21-805 . Because the § 41-21-805 affidavit is only concerned with the inmate’s previous lawsuits and, specifically, with whether there are any outstanding costs associated with the lawsuits, it does not serve the same function as the Rule 29 affidavit.”

— Tenn. Code Ann. § 41-21-805(a)(1) — 2 cases

Jarvis Q. Williams v. Cherry Lindamood, Warden (Tenn. Ct. App. 2018).

Ronald Collier v. Jack Morgan (Tenn. Ct. App. 2000).

— Tenn. Code Ann. § 41-21-805(a)(2) — 1 case

Sandy Eugene Womack v. Corr. Corp. Of Am. D/B/A Whiteville Corr. Facility, 448 S.W.3d 362 (Tenn. 2014). “10 While the affidavit requirement of Tenn.Code Ann. § 41-21-805 remained unchanged, inmates were now “required to pay the full amount of the filing fee” even if they were filing in forma pauperis.”

— Tenn. Code Ann. § 41-21-805(a)(l) — 2 cases

Pendleton v. Mills, 73 S.W.3d 115 (Tenn. Ct. App. 2001). “1995) as he was required to do by Tenn.Code Ann. § 41-21-805(a)(l) (1997). Had Mr.”

— Tenn. Code Ann. § 41-21-805(c) — 1 case

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.