Consumer Class Actions: 2. Prerequisites and Requirements for Maintenance of a Class Action
Tennessee courts have held that class certification is a procedural privilege rather than a substantive right. See, e.g., Bennett v. Stutts, 521 S.W.2d 575, 577–78 (Tenn. 1975); Hamilton v. Gibson Cty. Util. Dist., 845 S.W.2d 218, 225 (Tenn. Ct. App. 1992); First Am. Nat’l Bank v. Hunter, 581 S.W.2d 655, 659 (Tenn. Ct. App. 1978); Crouch v. Bridge Terminal Transp., Inc, No. M2001-00789-COA-R3-CV, 2002 Tenn. App. LEXIS 304 (Tenn. Ct. App. Apr. 30, 2002).