Must a plaintiff involved a Tennessee car wreck who has sued an out-of-state defendant for causing the wreck travel to the defendant’s home state to take a deposition?
No.
Tennessee law requires non-residents who own or operate vehicles in Tennessee which are involved in crashes in Tennessee to appear in Tennessee for a deposition if they are defendants in Tennessee litigation arising from the crash. The relevant statute is Tenn. Code Ann. Sec. 20-2-203(e):
Any owner, chauffeur or operator of any motor vehicle that is not licensed under the laws of this state, or any nonresident who, acting in behalf of the owner of any such vehicle, uses or causes to be used any such motor vehicle in this state, or any nonresident who hires or procures the use of a motor vehicle licensed under the laws of this state, for temporary use in the state, and who is duly served with process under this section and §§ 20-2-204 — 20-2-207, in connection with any civil action brought by any person against the owner, chauffeur or operator, or nonresident arising out of any accident or injury occurring in this state in which the vehicle is involved, shall be required, upon receipt of the proper notice as required in title 24, chapter 9 to appear at the time and place specified in the notice, which shall be in the county in which the action is pending, for the purpose of giving a pretrial discovery deposition as authorized by the rules of civil procedure and title 24, chapter 9. The written notice required by § 20-2-205 to be sent to any person served under §§ 20-2-204 — 20-2-207, along with a certified copy of the original summons, shall include a notification to the effect that the person shall be subject to appearance in this state for the purpose of giving a pretrial discovery deposition if subsequently served with proper notice to do so.