Section 3 - Motion Seeking Disqualification or Recusal of Appellate Judge or Justice

As amended through July 2, 2024

3.01. Any party seeking disqualification, recusal, or a determination of constitutional or statutory incompetence of a judge or justice of an appellate court shall do so by a timely filed written motion. The motion shall be supported by an affidavit under oath or a declaration under penalty of perjury on personal knowledge and by other appropriate materials; the motion shall state, with specificity, all factual and legal grounds supporting disqualification of the judge or justice and shall affirmatively state that it is not being presented for any improper purpose, such as to harass or to cause unnecessary delay or needless increase in the cost of litigation. A party who is represented by counsel is not permitted to file a pro se motion under this rule.

3.02.

(a) Upon the filing of a motion seeking disqualification, recusal, or determination of constitutional or statutory incompetence of an intermediate appellate judge, the judge in question shall act promptly by written order and either grant or deny the motion. If the motion is denied, the judge shall state in writing the grounds upon which he or she denies the motion. If the judge denies the motion, the movant, within twenty-one days of entry of the order, may file a motion for court review to be determined promptly by three other judges of the intermediate court upon a de novo standard of review.

(b) If a motion is filed seeking disqualification, recusal, or determination of constitutional or statutory incompetence of more than one judge of the intermediate appellate court ("recusal motion"), and if the recusal motion is denied by the judges in question, the movant, within twenty-one days of entry of the order, may file a motion for court review to be determined promptly by three other judges of the intermediate appellate court who were not subjects of the recusal motion, upon a de novo standard of review. If there are not three judges of the intermediate appellate court who were not subjects of the recusal motion, then a motion for court review pursuant to this section 3.02(b) is not available; under such circumstances, the order denying the recusal motion may be appealed pursuant to section 3.02(c).

(c) If the motion for court review is denied, or if a motion for court review is not available pursuant to the second sentence of section 3.02(b), an accelerated appeal as of right lies to the Tennessee Supreme Court, which shall expeditiously decide the appeal based upon the petition and other papers filed in the intermediate appellate court. The appeal to the Supreme Court shall be titled "recusal appeal from the [Court of Appeals or Court of Criminal Appeals]" and shall be filed within twenty-one days of the intermediate appellate court's order denying the motion for court review or, if a motion for court review was not available pursuant to the second sentence of section 3.02(b), within twenty-one days of the order denying the motion seeking disqualification or recusal of the appellate judges in question.

3.03.

(a) If a motion is filed seeking disqualification, recusal, or determination of constitutional or statutory incompetence of a Supreme Court justice, the justice in question shall act promptly by written order and either grant or deny the motion. If the motion is denied, the justice shall state in writing the grounds upon which he or she denies the motion. If the justice denies the motion, the movant, within twenty-one days of entry of the order, may file a motion for court review, which shall be determined promptly by the remaining justices upon a de novo standard of review.

(b) If a motion is filed seeking disqualification, recusal, or determination of constitutional or statutory incompetence of all of the justices of the Supreme Court, and if the motion is denied by the justices, no motion for court review shall be available pursuant to section 3.03(a).

3.04. The time periods for filing a motion for court review pursuant to sections 3.02(a), 3.02(b), or 3.03(a) and for filing a "recusal appeal from the [Court of Appeals or Court of Criminal Appeals]" pursuant to section 3.02(c) are jurisdictional and cannot be extended by the court. The computation of time for filing the foregoing matters under section 3 shall be governed by Tenn. R. App. P. 21(a).