Debt collectors in Tennessee

Credit cards: Tennessee has no separate open-account or oral-contract period. Credit card and other contract debt falls under the 6-year catch-all for 'contracts not otherwise expressly provided for' (T.C.A. 28-3-109(a)(3)), and courts look to the gravamen of the claim. Secondary sources agree on 6 years for credit cards.

Payments and acknowledgments: (a) While the period is running: in Graves v. Sawyer, 588 S.W.2d 542 (Tenn. 1979), which overruled Hall v. Skidmore, the court held that a part payment or interest payment, absent contrary evidence, is an acknowledgment that implies a promise to pay and keeps the debt alive for the full period from the payment date. Swett v. Binkley (Tenn. Ct. App. 2002) says this is not a per se rule: the payment must amount to an acknowledgment of the debt and a willingness to pay, so the result is fact-dependent. One unpublished bankruptcy ruling (In re Shippy, Bankr. M.D. Tenn. 2016) said an acknowledgment made during the period did not restart it. (b) After expiry: case law allows revival by an express promise or an unequivocal acknowledgment of the debt with willingness to pay. No Tennessee statute requiring a writing was found, and no statute bars revival. The rules are the same for all creditors.

Judgments: Actions on judgments must be brought within 10 years (T.C.A. 28-3-110(a)(2)). Under Tenn. R. Civ. P. 69.04, a creditor with an unsatisfied judgment may move to extend it for another 10 years by filing the motion within 10 years of entry. The extension can be repeated in each later 10-year period, and a motion unopposed for 30 days is granted. Courts strictly enforce the filing deadline (Town & Country Jewelers, Tenn. Ct. App. 2018). There is no time limit for judgments for injury or death caused by criminal conduct entered on or after 7/1/2014 (28-3-110(b)).

Other rules: Statute text came from the Public.Resource.Org release of the Official Code of Tennessee Annotated (Release 76, 2021), including its case annotations, cross-checked against FindLaw (current as of 2024-01-02). The official Lexis-hosted code and tncourts.gov (JS/bot challenge) were not readable. Demand notes get 10 years (28-3-109(c)). No Tennessee time-barred-debt or debt-buyer statute was found in Title 62 (the Collection Service Act) or Title 47 (consumer protection). A 2025 Tennessee judicial-education handout mentions new documentation requirements in consumer-debt suits; that is not an SOL rule and was not verified. The Rule 69.04 text comes from Tennessee appellate opinions (search summaries), not the rule page.

• open account: T.C.A. 28-3-109(a)(3)
• written contract: T.C.A. 28-3-109(a)(3)
• oral contract: T.C.A. 28-3-109(a)(3)
• promissory note: T.C.A. 47-3-118(a) (6 years); demand notes 10 years under T.C.A. 28-3-109(c)
• judgment: T.C.A. 28-3-110(a)(2); Tenn. R. Civ. P. 69.04
• payment restarts: Graves v. Sawyer, 588 S.W.2d 542 (Tenn. 1979); Swett v. Binkley (Tenn. Ct. App. 2002); C.A. Hobbs, Jr., Inc. v. Brainard, 919 S.W.2d 337 (Tenn. Ct. App. 1995)
• other: T.C.A. 28-3-110(a)(3): 10 years for cases not expressly provided for

Sources: unicourt.github.io · codes.findlaw.com · hallapproved.com