A new decision of the Tennessee Court of Appeals makes it clear that Tennessee Rule of Civil Procedure 8.03 means what it says.  In Allgood v. Gateway Health Systems,  No. MC-CC-CV-MA-06-391 (Tenn. Ct. App. Sept. 22, 2009), the Court held that a defendant who asserted an insufficiency of process defense that was lacking in any supporting facts could not use that defense to seek dismissal of the case after the plaintiff could no longer cure the deficiency.

In Tennessee, unlike in federal court, a defendant who pleads an affirmative defense must set forth facts that form the basis of the defense.