What Intellectual Property Insurance Requirements Apply in Tennessee?

Tennessee’s 2024 ELVIS Act added a person’s voice to state publicity rights and addressed AI-generated voice and likeness uses. If your business uses synthetic endorsements or licensed voices, review consent records and ask whether publicity claims are covered.

What Is Intellectual Property Insurance?

Intellectual property insurance comes in two separate parts: defense, when you're accused of infringing a patent, trademark or copyright, and enforcement, when you pursue someone who copied yours. A defense-only quote doesn't pay for your own lawsuit, so ask for each part you need. Read the national Intellectual property guide.

What to Watch for With Intellectual Property in Tennessee

Match the State Rule to Your Coverage
Tennessee’s 2024 ELVIS Act added voice to protected personal rights and provides a civil claim for certain unauthorized uses, including some AI-generated voice or likeness outputs. Inventory synthetic spokespeople and ask whether the policy covers publicity-right defense. ³
Plan for the State Remedy
Tennessee law makes publicity rights assignable and descendible, and commercial availability of an identifiable voice or likeness recording is relevant to continued use after death. Retain license-chain records for archival or AI-generated material and ask how the policy handles a dispute over authority. ³
Check the Policy Against the Claim
Tennessee’s trade-secret statute permits injunctions against actual or threatened misuse and damages for loss or unjust enrichment. Ask whether a policy can respond to both the identity-use and trade-secret counts when one product launch triggers both. ²

Which Intellectual Property Providers Have Tennessee License Records?

No provider in our research has both a state license record and a listing for this coverage line. This does not establish that providers are unlicensed. Check the regulator’s license lookup and confirm availability with a provider when requesting a quote.

Who Regulates Insurance in Tennessee?

Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance

TDCI regulates and licenses insurance companies, agents, brokers, surplus-lines agents, and public adjusters. Its complaint process accepts complaints about agents or companies when the policy was written in Tennessee, and its property/casualty unit reviews filed policy rates, rules, and forms. ^4,^5,⁶

Website: Regulator website
License lookup: Search licensed producers
Complaints: File a complaint

Surplus-Lines Tax and Stamping Office in Tennessee

Reported tax rate. 5% of gross premium plus 0.175% SLAS transaction fee ^7,⁸

For Tennessee-home-state surplus-lines policies, TDCI lists a 5% tax on gross premium and a 0.175% SLAS transaction fee on gross premium; the agent receives an invoice and pays both through SLIP. The sources reviewed do not establish that the fee is always separately charged to the policyholder or resolve guaranty-association treatment, so ask your broker to itemize charges and review the policy notice.

Questions to Ask Before You Buy Intellectual Property in Tennessee

Does the policy cover publicity-right claims involving advertising used in Tennessee?
Are synthetic, archival, or postmortem likeness uses addressed by the coverage?
What consent and license records should we give the broker for campaign materials?

Intellectual Property Insurance in Tennessee: FAQ

Does Tennessee law protect commercial use of a person’s identity?

Yes. Tennessee law protects an individual’s name, photograph, voice, or likeness as property, and 2024 amendments address unauthorized voice and AI-generated uses. Keep releases and licenses with the campaign records. ³

How should I handle a suspected intellectual-property claim in Tennessee?

Notify the insurer promptly and preserve the first demand, access logs, agreements, and discovery date. Tennessee’s trade-secret statute permits injunctions against actual or threatened misuse and damages for loss or unjust enrichment. Ask whether a policy can respond to both the identity-use and trade-secret counts when one product launch triggers both. The federal Defend Trade Secrets Act is a separate claim with its own filing period. ^2,¹

Sources for Intellectual Property Insurance in Tennessee

1
18 U.S.C. § 1836, Civil Proceedings. Office of the Law Revision Counsel, U.S. House of Representatives; § 1836(b)(1), (3): federal civil action, injunction, and damages for qualifying trade secret misappropriation. Accessed 2026-09-29.
2
Tennessee Uniform Trade Secrets Act. Tennessee Legislature; §§ 47-25-1701–1709: definition, remedies, limitation, and displacement. Accessed 2026-09-29.
3
Tennessee Public Chapter 588 (2024), ELVIS Act. Tennessee Secretary of State; Amendments to Tenn. Code §§ 47-25-1101–1105, including voice rights and commercial uses of AI-generated voice/likeness. Accessed 2026-09-29.
4
tennessee insurance regulator. State insurance regulator; TDCI official insurance-division and consumer pages describe department scope, review units and complaint role. Accessed 2026-09-28.
5
TDCI Agent/Producer Resources. State insurance regulator; Agent Licensing Section licenses producers, business entities, surplus-lines agents, brokers, and public adjusters; page links to Verify License. Accessed 2026-09-28.
6
File an Insurance Complaint. State insurance regulator; TDCI accepts online complaints about insurers and agents only for policies written in Tennessee; third-party claimants are directed to call. Accessed 2026-09-28.
7
Surplus Lines Filing Procedures. Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance; Tax Payments section: 5% gross premium plus .175% of gross premium SLAS transaction fee; agents receive quarterly invoices and pay via ACH in SLIP. Accessed 2026-09-28.
8
Tennessee Public Chapter 446 (2011), T.C.A. §56-14-113. Tennessee Secretary of State; Current tax framework enacted in §56-14-113: 5% applies when Tennessee is the insured’s home state; tax collected from insured in addition to premium. Read with current TDCI filing-procedure page for current fee and SLIP handling. Accessed 2026-09-28.
9
Licenses. At-Bay; Current producer introduction and state table; At-Bay Insurance Services LLC; P&C and surplus-lines identifiers. Accessed 2026-09-21.
10
Licenses and Carriers. Coalition; Licenses and Carriers, re-read 22 September 2026: Insurance Licenses table for Coalition Insurance Solutions, Inc., national producer number 18419475, with producer and surplus-lines numbers for all 50 states and DC including California 0L76155, Georgia 196479, Texas 2199630 and 2205589, Pennsylvania 815731 and 817452, Colorado 539028 and Wisconsin 3000108852. Insurance Carriers table naming, with NAIC numbers, Allianz Underwriters Insurance Company 36420, Arch Specialty Insurance Company 21199, Ascot Specialty Insurance Company 45055, Ascot Insurance Company 23752, Aspen Specialty Insurance Company 10717, Chaucer Insurance Company DAC, Coalition Insurance Company 29530, Fireman's Fund Indemnity Corporation 11380, Fortegra Specialty Insurance Company 16823, Lloyd's of London, MSIG Specialty Insurance USA Inc. 34886, MS Transverse Specialty Insurance Company 41807, Steadfast Insurance Company 26387, Vantage Risk Specialty Insurance Company 16275 and Zurich American Insurance Company 16535. Accessed 2026-09-22.
11
Insurance Producer Licenses. Corgi Insurance; Current complete Insurance Producer Licenses table for Corgi Insurance Services, Inc.; 50 rows covering 49 states and DC (DC 3003091619); no New Mexico row; no NPN or as-of date shown. Accessed 2026-09-28.
12
About Hiscox US Insurance. Hiscox; Hiscox Insurance Company Inc. NAIC 10200 as Chicago, IL domiciled insurer admitted or licensed in all 50 states and D.C.; Hiscox Inc. as general agent and Lloyd’s coverholder for Syndicates 33 and 3624; surplus-lines placements through licensed surplus-lines brokers; A.M. Best rating statement. Accessed 2026-09-16.
13
Licenses. ERGO NEXT Insurance; Current entity-by-state license table reopened 28 September 2026: 50 rows under Next First Insurance Agency, Inc., including Washington, DC; New York rows instead list Next Insurance Services PC-1423070 and AP Intego BR-1198885. Accessed 2026-09-28.
14
Insurance Licenses by State. TechInsurance; Current state table; identifies TechInsurance as a division of Specialty Program Group LLC d/b/a SPG Insurance Solutions; lists DC 3000041536 and labels Rhode Island “Individual licenses,” without an agency license number. Accessed 2026-09-28.
15
Licenses. Vouch; Effective 16 January 2025: Vouch Specialty Insurance Services, LLC, NPN 19926463; P&C table (50 states and DC); surplus-lines table includes Idaho 870820; footnote says Georgia and Idaho do not issue agency-level surplus-lines licenses; Idaho retained as producer-only due to conflict. Accessed 2026-09-15.

What Intellectual Property Insurance Requirements Apply in Tennessee?

What Is Intellectual Property Insurance?

What to Watch for With Intellectual Property in Tennessee

Match the State Rule to Your Coverage

Plan for the State Remedy

Check the Policy Against the Claim