(a) Every insurance company incorporated under the laws of this state shall, by a duly executed instrument, constitute and appoint the commissioner, the commissioner’s deputy and their successors in office its true and lawful attorneys, upon whom all lawful processes in any action or legal proceeding against it may be served and who may acknowledge any such lawful processes.
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Terms Used In Tennessee Code 56-2-501

  • Answer: The formal written statement by a defendant responding to a civil complaint and setting forth the grounds for defense.
  • Commissioner: means the commissioner of commerce and insurance. See Tennessee Code 56-1-102
  • Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
  • Plaintiff: The person who files the complaint in a civil lawsuit.
  • Power of attorney: A written instrument which authorizes one person to act as another's agent or attorney. The power of attorney may be for a definite, specific act, or it may be general in nature. The terms of the written power of attorney may specify when it will expire. If not, the power of attorney usually expires when the person granting it dies. Source: OCC
  • 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
  • Service of process: The service of writs or summonses to the appropriate party.
  • 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
(b) Every insurance company incorporated under the laws of this state shall agree that any lawful process against it that may be served upon its attorneys or upon which they may acknowledge service, shall be of the same force and validity as if served on the company, and that the authority thereof shall continue in force irrevocably as long as any liability of the company remains outstanding.
(c) Any process issued by any court of record in this state and acknowledged by or served upon the commissioner or the commissioner’s deputy by the proper officer of the county in which the office of commissioner or deputy is located shall be deemed a sufficient process on the company. It is the duty of the commissioner and deputy, immediately after service of process, to forward by registered return receipt mail to the company an exact copy of the process.
(d) A record of each service of process shall be kept in the office of the commissioner, showing the date of service, the name of the company on whose behalf service was acknowledged, the name of the plaintiff or complainant, the date the defendant is required to answer, the court issuing the process, and the county in which the suit is brought.
(e) The power of attorney shall be filed and kept in the office of the commissioner.
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