Filing And Service Of Pleadings And Other Materials

(1) All pleadings, petitions for review, and any other materials required to be filed with an agency or the Administrative Procedures Division by a time certain shall be filed by delivering such materials in the manner directed by the applicable agency or the Administrative Procedures Division, so long as they are actually received within the required time period. (2) Every pleading, written motion, and other document filed with the Administrative Procedures Division shall be signed by the attorney of record or if the party is not represented by an attorney shall be signed by the party. An electronic signature may be used to sign a document and shall have the same force and effect as a written signature. Each document shall state the signer’s address, telephone number, email address, and Tennessee board of professional responsibility number, if any. (3) Materials shall be filed with the Administrative Procedures Division either electronically or by facsimile, unless both are impracticable. If a party is unable to file electronically or by facsimile, documents may be filed in person or by mail at the address designated by the Administrative Procedures Division, which is available by contacting the Administrative Procedures Division or by visiting the Tennessee Secretary of State’s website. (4) Once a case has been initiated with the Administrative Procedures Division, all pleadings and other materials shall be filed with the Administrative Procedures Division and shall include the Administrative Procedures Division case number on the first page. In contested cases heard before the Administrative Procedures Division, petitions for agency review of an initial order and for agency reconsideration or stay of a final order shall be filed with both the agency and the Administrative Procedures Division. However, once a case in which an administrative judge issued an initial order is being reviewed by an agency commissioner for the issuance of a final order, or a case is on judicial review pursuant to T.C.A. § 4-5-322, no further filings need be made with the Administrative Procedures Division except the agency commissioner’s final order or a reviewing court’s order. (5) All materials filed with the Administrative Procedures Division will be stamped with the date and time of receipt as soon as is practicable after actual receipt of the filings. The filing party may request that a copy of the filed document, as stamped received, be returned to the filing party via either mail or electronically, or at the time of filing if filed in person with the Administrative Procedures Division. If the filing was submitted by mail and the filing party requests a return stamped copy by mail, the filing must be submitted with a postage pre-paid envelope for use by the Administrative Procedures Division. If no pre-paid envelope is provided, the Administrative Procedures Division will instead send the stamped copy of the filing via electronic mail if an electronic mail address is available. (6) All filings received by 11:59 p.m. Central Time on a day that the Administrative Procedures Division is open for business shall be considered filed that day. In the event the filing is received on a weekend, state observed holiday, or other non-business day, the filing shall be considered filed on the next business day. (7) All personally identifiable information (PII), protected health information (PHI), and any other confidential information, including social security numbers, shall be redacted from all documents prior to filing. UNIFORM RULES OF PROCEDURE FOR HEARING CONTESTED CHAPTER 1360-04-01 CASES BEFORE STATE ADMINISTRATIVE AGENCIES (8) Depositions, interrogatories, requests for documents, requests for admissions, and responses thereto should not be filed with the Administrative Procedures Division unless they are to be considered by the administrative judge for any purpose in the proceeding. (9) Copies of any and all materials filed with the agency or Administrative Procedures Division in a contested case shall also be served upon all parties, or upon their counsel once counsel has made an appearance. Any such material shall contain a statement indicating that copies have been served upon all parties, specifying the date and manner of service. The statement should be signed by the person who served the material. Service may be by mail, by electronic mail in the manner provided by the Tennessee Rules of Civil Procedure, or by hand delivery. (10) Any party to a contested case proceeding before the Administrative Procedures Division may request an electronic copy of the record in the case at no cost. The Administrative Procedures Division may require satisfactory proof, as determined by the Administrative Procedures Division, that the requesting individual is a party to the case, a party representative, or counsel for a party before providing any requested documentation. All other requests for documents pertaining to any contested case before the Administrative Procedures Division must be requested by means of a Public Records Request, as contemplated under Tennessee law and the Public Records Policy for the Department of State. The Administrative Procedures Division may provide the parties either a physical or electronic copy of the record. Unless a law or rule requires otherwise, if a physical copy is requested, then a party may be charged copying fees consistent with those required for a Public Records Request.