Court System:

Circuit Court:  The circuit court has jurisdiction over all debts and demands on contract with an amount in controversy exceeding $50.00. (16-10-106.)

Chancery Court:  The Chancery Court has similar jurisdiction as the Circuit Court and has exclusive original jurisdiction of all civil cases and cases of an equitable nature, where the debt or demand exceeds fifty dollars ($50.00).
 
Court of General Sessions:  The jurisdiction of the Court of General Sessions varies from county to county based on state laws and private acts.  Civil jurisdiction is restricted to specific monetary limits and types of actions.  Under Section 16-15-501 of the Tennessee Code,  the jurisdiction of the Court of General Sessions in all civil cases, where they have been created, may be extended to the sum of fifteen thousand dollars ($15,000); and to the sum of twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000) in any county having a population of not less than seven hundred thousand (700,000) according to the 1980 federal census or any subsequent federal census.  In any county having a population of not less than two hundred eighty-five thousand (285,000) nor more than two hundred eighty-six thousand (286,000), according to the 1990 federal census or any subsequent federal census, the jurisdiction of the Court of General Sessions, where they have been created, may be extended to the sum of ten thousand dollars ($10,000).  (16-15-501.)