In professional services such as those provided by doctors, lawyers, architects, engineers, and dentists, there may be a warranty or guarantee of the quality of the services made or implied by law even when there is no express warranty written or stated. And in some states implied warranties cannot be disclaimed by the service provider.

Laws vary from state to state and some state laws recognize implied warranties in professional services and some do not. In states that do not recognize implied warranties in professional services, claims regarding the quality of professional services are generally analyzed as malpractice claims based on the professional’s alleged negligence in failing to meet the standard of care—generally a reasonably prudent and capable professional for the particular profession under the same or similar circumstances.

Laws regarding implied warranties in the provision of professional services may be located in a state’s court opinions (common law or case law) or in its statutes.

In Tennessee, the provision of professional services by doctors, lawyers, architects, engineers, and dentists is generally not subject to implied warranties regarding the quality of services as one might find with goods under the Uniform Commercial Code. Instead, the quality of professional services is typically addressed through the lens of professional malpractice. This means that if a professional fails to provide services that meet the standard of care expected of a reasonably prudent professional in the same field under similar circumstances, they may be held liable for malpractice. Tennessee does not have a specific statute that establishes an implied warranty for the quality of professional services. Claims against professionals for inadequate service quality would therefore be pursued as malpractice claims, which require the claimant to prove that the professional owed a duty to the claimant, the professional breached that duty by not meeting the standard of care, the breach caused harm, and damages resulted from the harm.