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HB1301 • 2026

Civil Procedure

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 28, Chapter 3; Title 39 and Title 40, relative to sexual assault.

Active

The official status still shows this bill as active or still awaiting another formal step.

Sponsor
Grills, Haile
Last action
2026-03-18
Official status
Taken off notice for cal in s/c Civil Justice Subcommittee of Judiciary Committee
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

Checked against official source text during the last sync.

Reviving Civil Actions for Sexual Assault

This bill revives civil actions based on sexual assaults that occurred when victims were 18 or older and had been dismissed due to expired time limits before July 1, 2025.

What This Bill Does

  • Allows people who were sexually assaulted after turning 18 to file a lawsuit if the case was previously dismissed because it was too late under old rules.
  • Sets a new window for filing these lawsuits from six months to two years after July 1, 2025.

Who It Names or Affects

  • People who were sexually assaulted when they were 18 or older and whose cases had been dismissed before July 1, 2025.
  • Courts that will handle these revived lawsuits.

Terms To Know

statute of limitations
A law setting a time limit for filing a lawsuit after an event happens.
sexual assault
An offense involving rape, aggravated rape, especially aggravated rape, sexual battery, aggravated sexual battery, sexual battery by an authority figure, or incest.

Limits and Unknowns

  • The bill does not apply to cases where the statute of limitations had not expired before July 1, 2025.
  • It is unclear how many past cases will be affected by this change.

Bill History

  1. 2026-03-18 Tennessee General Assembly

    Taken off notice for cal in s/c Civil Justice Subcommittee of Judiciary Committee

  2. 2026-03-11 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on s/c cal Civil Justice Subcommittee for 3/18/2026

  3. 2026-01-21 Tennessee General Assembly

    Action Def. in s/c Civil Justice Subcommittee to Special Calendar on 3/18/2026

  4. 2026-01-14 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on s/c cal Civil Justice Subcommittee for 1/21/2026

  5. 2025-04-02 Tennessee General Assembly

    Action Def. in s/c Civil Justice Subcommittee to First Calendar of 2026

  6. 2025-03-31 Tennessee General Assembly

    Assigned to General Subcommittee of Senate Judiciary Committee

  7. 2025-03-26 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on s/c cal Civil Justice Subcommittee for 4/2/2025

  8. 2025-03-26 Tennessee General Assembly

    Action Def. in s/c Civil Justice Subcommittee to 4/2/2025

  9. 2025-03-26 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate Judiciary Committee calendar for 3/31/2025

  10. 2025-03-24 Tennessee General Assembly

    Action deferred in Senate Judiciary Committee to 4/1/2025

  11. 2025-03-19 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on s/c cal Civil Justice Subcommittee for 3/26/2025

  12. 2025-03-19 Tennessee General Assembly

    Action Def. in s/c Civil Justice Subcommittee to 3/26/2025

  13. 2025-03-19 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on Senate Judiciary Committee calendar for 3/24/2025

  14. 2025-03-18 Tennessee General Assembly

    Sponsor(s) Added.

  15. 2025-03-12 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on s/c cal Civil Justice Subcommittee for 3/19/2025

  16. 2025-03-12 Tennessee General Assembly

    Sponsor(s) Added.

  17. 2025-03-12 Tennessee General Assembly

    Action Def. in s/c Civil Justice Subcommittee to 3/19/2025

  18. 2025-03-05 Tennessee General Assembly

    Placed on s/c cal Civil Justice Subcommittee for 3/12/2025

  19. 2025-02-26 Tennessee General Assembly

    Sponsor(s) Added.

  20. 2025-02-25 Tennessee General Assembly

    Sponsor change.

  21. 2025-02-25 Tennessee General Assembly

    Sponsor(s) withdrawn.

  22. 2025-02-25 Tennessee General Assembly

    Sponsor(s) Added.

  23. 2025-02-12 Tennessee General Assembly

    Assigned to s/c Civil Justice Subcommittee

  24. 2025-02-12 Tennessee General Assembly

    P2C, ref. to Judiciary Committee

  25. 2025-02-12 Tennessee General Assembly

    Passed on Second Consideration, refer to Senate Judiciary Committee

  26. 2025-02-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    Intro., P1C.

  27. 2025-02-10 Tennessee General Assembly

    Introduced, Passed on First Consideration

  28. 2025-02-06 Tennessee General Assembly

    Filed for introduction

  29. 2025-02-06 Tennessee General Assembly

    Filed for introduction

Official Summary Text

This bill provides that
a civil action or an injury or illness based on a
sexual assault that occurred when the injured person was
18
or older and is barred as of July 1, 2025, because the applicable period of limitation has expired, is revived and action thereon may be commenced not earlier than six months after, and not later
than two years after July 1, 2025.

Dismissal of a previous action, ordered before July 1, 2025, on grounds that the previous action was time-barred is not grounds for dismissal of a revival action pursuant to this
bill
.

As used in this
bill
, "sexual ass
ault" means an offense involving
rape, aggravated rape, especially aggravated rape, sexual battery, aggravated sexual battery, sexual battery by an authority figure, or incest.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text 
SENATE BILL 1234
By Haile

HOUSE BILL 1301
By Grills

HB1301
002996
- 1 -

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 28,
Chapter 3; Title 39 and Title 40, relative to sexual
assault.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF TENNESSEE:
SECTION 1. Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 28, Chapter 3, Part 1, is amended by
adding the following as a new section:
(a) Notwithstanding §§ 28-3-104 and 28-3-118, a civil action or an injury or
illness based on a sexual assault that occurred when the injured person was eighteen
(18) years of age or older and is barred as of July 1, 2025, because the applicable
period of limitation has expired, is hereby revived and action thereon may be
commenced not earlier than six (6) months after, and not later than two (2) years after
July 1, 2025.
(b) Dismissal of a previous action, ordered before July 1, 2025, on grounds that
the previous action was time-barred is not grounds for dismissal of a revival action
pursuant to this section.
(c) As used in this section, "sexual assault" means an offense involving rape, as
described in § 39-13-502, § 39-13-503, or § 39-13-534; sexual battery, as described in §
39-13-504, § 39-13-505, or § 39-13-527; or incest, as described in § 39-15-302.
SECTION 2. This act takes effect July 1, 2025, the public welfare requiring it.