Tennessee
Common questions
Can a lawyer be admitted in Tennessee without taking the bar exam (admission on motion)?
Admission on motion available. Admitted by bar examination with 5 of 7 years active practice, education, good standing, character fitness
Does Tennessee accept a transferred Uniform Bar Exam score?
Transferred UBE accepted: legacy min 270, NextGen min 620 (from July 2026); score age 3 yrs/5 yrs per NCBE (secondary)
Admission on motion
- Requirements
- Admitted by bar examination with 5 of 7 years active practice, education, good standing, character fitness
- Years of practice
- five of the seven years immediately preceding the date upon which the application is filed
- Fee
- $1,400 comity application (fee schedule amended Nov. 1, 2024); $150 license fee after approval
- Rule
- Tenn. Sup. Ct. R. 7, sec. 5.01
- UBE score transfer
- Transferred UBE accepted: legacy min 270, NextGen min 620 (from July 2026); score age 3 yrs/5 yrs per NCBE (secondary)
- UBE score window
- 3 years from date grades were released; usable up to 5 years under section 3.05(b) with practice
- Other routes
- In-House Counsel, Military Servicemember Spouse temporary license, Supervised Practice, Practice Pending Admission
- Foreign attorneys
- Foreign-licensed lawyers may register as In-House Counsel / Foreign Legal Consultants when employed in Tennessee
- Military spouse
- Temporary license available; applicant meeting (1)-(11) requirements may be temporarily licensed and admitted upon Board approval
4 not found in the pulled documents
- Reciprocity
- Not in the pulled documents
- Reciprocity states
- Not in the pulled documents
- UBE minimum
- Not in the pulled documents
- MPRE
- Not in the pulled documents
State-court pro hac vice
- Rule
- Tenn. Sup. Ct. R. 19
- Procedure
- BPR pro hac vice page exists
3 not found in the pulled documents
- Local counsel
- Not in the pulled documents
- Limits
- Not in the pulled documents
- Fee
- Not in the pulled documents
Language from the source documents
8 quoted passages
On motion
(3) have been primarily engaged in the active practice of law, as defined below, in one or more states or territories of the United States, or the District of Columbia, for five of the seven years immediately preceding the date upon which the application is filed;tncourts.gov
On-motion rule
Sec. 5.01. Minimum Requirements for Admission Without Examination of Persons Admitted in Other Jurisdictions.tncourts.gov
UBE transfer
A UBE score transferred to Tennessee is valid for three years from the date grades were released in Tennessee for the exam administration for which the score was earned unless the UBE score can be used for admission under section 3.05(b).tncourts.gov
Other routes
Registration for In-House Counsel, Military Servicemember Spouse, Supervised Practice, and Practice Pending Admission.tnble.org
Pro hac vice rule
(c) is practicing in compliance with Tenn. Sup. Ct. R. 8, RPC 5.5(c), Tenn. Sup. Ct. R. 8, RPC 5.5(d), or Tenn. Sup. Ct. R. 19 (pro hac vice).tncourts.gov
Years of practice
have been primarily engaged in the active practice of law, as defined below, in one or more states or territories of the United States, or the District of Columbia, for five of the seven years immediately preceding the date upon which the application is filed;tncourts.gov
Foreign attorneys
A lawyer licensed in another U.S. jurisdiction or registered as a Foreign Legal Consultant, or a lawyer licensed in another country;tnble.org
Military spouse
An applicant who meets the requirements listed in (1) through (11), below may be temporarily licensed and admitted to the practice of law in Tennessee, upon approval of the Board.tncourts.gov