Tennessee Dog Law
Liability Statute
Tennessee has a strict liability statute, with certain criteria. A dog must be under reasonable control and not running at large. If a dog is running loose on the owner’s unfenced front lawn, the owner can be held liable for damages, because it is a breach of the statute. There is no liability for a dog that is doing police or military work, or protecting someone from being attacked. There is no liability if the victim provoked the dog. For the owner to be held liable for an attack on a residential, farm, or other noncommercial property owned, rented, or leased by the dog owner, the victim must prove negligence on the part of the owner. A “residential exclusion” of the dog bit statute is considered confusing, and Tennessee is the only state that has it. Under this exclusion, guests in a dog owner’s home are not covered under insurance policies, while strangers off the owner’s property are covered.
Common Law Liability
In order to recover for a dog-bite, the plaintiff must prove that the dog owner’s negligence caused the injury.
Dangerous Dog Statute
Tennessee does not have a Dangerous Dog Statute.
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