People also ask
The program does NOT:
- Help participants change their identities or relocate.
- Remove or delete existing public records.
- Offer legal advice.
- Relieve participants of their legal or financial responsibilities.
Under the Tennessee Public Records Act, T.C.A. § 10-7-501 et. seq., all state or local government records are considered public and are available for public inspection and copying, unless specifically protected by other law. This means that any member of the public can request that a state or local government official allow them to inspect and/or take a copy of certain records, which may contain an another individual’s name, address, or phone number. This means that an abuser may be able to track or discover the residential address of a victim through public records. The primary goal of the Safe at Home Address Confidentiality Program is to prevent this from happening and provide victims of domestic violence and other crimes with a sense of security in their own homes and freedom from intimidation or further abuse.
The Safe at Home Address Confidentiality Program is a statewide address confidentiality program administered by the Office of the Tennessee Secretary of State. It is open to all victims of domestic abuse, stalking, human trafficking, rape, sexual battery, or any other sexual offense who satisfy eligibility and application requirements at no cost. Once a participant has been approved, they are provided with a ‘substitute’ address that can be used by them and their children as their official mailing address for all state and local government purposes, including public school or public benefits enrollment, subject only to a few limited exceptions.
- A nonresident fiduciary is a person who does not reside in Tennessee, or a bank or trust company not authorized to do business in Tennessee, that is appointed by will, deed, trust agreement, court order or otherwise to serve as trustee of a corporate or personal trust, personal representative of an estate, guardian, conservator for an incompetent person, guardian for a minor or in any other fiduciary capacity.
- Only certain types of individuals, banks or trust companies may serve as nonresident fiduciaries. Please consult Tennessee Code Annotated, Section 35-50-107 for a complete listing of qualified persons or entities.
A nonresident person, bank or trust company cannot serve in a fiduciary capacity in Tennessee unless and until it has appointed in writing the Tennessee Secretary of State as its agent for service of process. This appointment authorizes the Secretary of State to receive and to forward to the nonresident fiduciary by registered or certified mail all process in any action or proceeding relating to any trust, estate or matter within this State in which the person, bank or trust company is serving as fiduciary.
The appointment document submitted to the Secretary of State must contain the following items:
- The name of the specific trust, estate, or person for which the fiduciary has been appointed;
- The name and out-of-state street address (including zip code) of the fiduciary;
- A statement clearly designating the Tennessee Secretary of State as agent for service of process;
- An original signature of the nonresident person or the representative of the bank or trust company (or a certified copy of the signed appointment document); and
- The date the document is signed.
- The appointment document need not be in affidavit form or notarized.
- The appointment document must be accompanied by a filing fee of $10.00. Please make checks or money orders payable to the Tennessee Secretary of State.
Agent Appointment by Nonresident Fiduciary form is also available.