Good Samaritan law
First Aid & CPR Tennessee
The Good Samaritan: compassion and protection
Drawn from the Bible (Luke 10:25-37), the parable of the Good Samaritan tells of a traveller left for dead who is rescued by a stranger that tends to him and sees to his care. Beyond its religious context, it carries a universal message: the moral duty to help others in danger, through compassion and altruism.
Inspired by this principle, many so-called Good Samaritan laws have been enacted around the world to protect those who assist in good faith during an emergency from legal action. The exact scope of that protection, however, varies from one jurisdiction to another: here is what the law applicable to your region provides.
Your protection under the law
In Tennessee, the Good Samaritan Law (Tenn. Code Ann. § 63-6-218) protects anyone who in good faith renders emergency care at the scene of an accident, medical emergency, or disaster, without directly charging for the help. No civil liability attaches unless the rescuer is grossly negligent. Since the 1998-1999 amendments, that immunity expressly takes in the use of an automated external defibrillator and reaches owners, users, and even trainers.
No duty to act, but every reason to
Tennessee makes helping a choice, not a command: no one is legally bound to rescue a stranger. But once you decide to help, the state removes the legal risk of ordinary negligence and lets you focus on what matters. The threshold is clear and reassuring — it is gross fault, never an imperfect good-faith effort, that could ever be held against you.
Why training matters
A protective law only matters if someone on the spot knows how to use it. Cardiac arrest gives no warning: it strikes at home, at work, in a gym, and it demands action before help arrives. Training in CPR and the AED builds movements that become reflexes on the day panic would otherwise freeze everything. In Tennessee the law already has your back — all that's left is being ready to put it to good use.