In contested cases:

(1) The agency shall admit and give probative effect to evidence admissible in a court, and when necessary to ascertain facts not reasonably susceptible to proof under the rules of court, evidence not admissible thereunder may be admitted if it is of a type commonly relied upon by reasonably prudent men in the conduct of their affairs. The agency shall give effect to the rules of privilege recognized by law and to agency statutes protecting the confidentiality of certain records, and shall exclude evidence which in its judgment is irrelevant, immaterial or unduly repetitious;
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Terms Used In Tennessee Code 4-5-313

  • Affidavit: A written statement of facts confirmed by the oath of the party making it, before a notary or officer having authority to administer oaths.
  • Agency: means each state board, commission, committee, department, officer, or any other unit of state government authorized or required by any statute or constitutional provision to make rules or to determine contested cases. See Tennessee Code 4-5-102
  • Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
  • Order: means an agency action of particular applicability that determines the legal rights, duties, privileges, immunities or other legal interests of a specific person or persons. See Tennessee Code 4-5-102
  • Party: means each person or agency named or admitted as a party, or properly seeking and entitled as of right to be admitted as a party. See Tennessee Code 4-5-102
  • Record: means information that is inscribed on a tangible medium or that is stored in an electronic or other medium and is retrievable in a perceivable form. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
  • State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the several territories of the United States. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
  • United States: includes the District of Columbia and the several territories of the United States. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
(2) At any time not less than ten (10) days prior to a hearing or a continued hearing, any party shall deliver to the opposing party a copy of any affidavit such party proposes to introduce in evidence, together with a notice in the form provided in subdivision (4). Unless the opposing party, within seven (7) days after delivery, delivers to the proponent a request to cross-examine an affiant, the opposing party’s right to cross-examination of such affiant is waived and the affidavit, if introduced in evidence, shall be given the same effect as if the affiant had testified orally. If an opportunity to cross-examine an affiant is not afforded after a proper request is made as provided in this subdivision (2), the affidavit shall not be admitted into evidence. “Delivery” for purposes of this section means actual receipt;
(3) The officer assigned to conduct the hearing may admit affidavits not submitted in accordance with this section where necessary to prevent injustice;
(4) The notice referred to in subdivision (2) shall contain the following information and be substantially in the following form:

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(5) Documentary evidence otherwise admissible may be received in the form of copies or excerpts, or by incorporation by reference to material already on file with the agency. Upon request, parties shall be given an opportunity to compare the copy with the original, if reasonably available; and
(6)

(A) Official notice may be taken of:

(i) Any fact that could be judicially noticed in the courts of this state;
(ii) The record of other proceedings before the agency;
(iii) Technical or scientific matters within the agency’s specialized knowledge; and
(iv) Codes or standards that have been adopted by an agency of the United States, of this state or of another state, or by a nationally recognized organization or association;
(B) Parties must be notified before or during the hearing, or before the issuance of any initial or final order that is based in whole or in part on facts or material noticed, of the specific facts or material noticed and the source thereof, including any staff memoranda and data, and be afforded an opportunity to contest and rebut the facts or material so noticed.
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