Whenever a vacancy occurs or exists in the office of a justice of the Supreme Court while the General Assembly is in session, or whenever the term of office of a justice of the Supreme Court will expire or the office will be vacated at a date certain between the adjournment of the General Assembly and the commencement of the next session of the General Assembly, a successor may be elected at any time during a session preceding the date of such vacancy, by the vote of a majority of the members elected to each house of the General Assembly, for a full term and, upon qualification, the successor shall enter at once upon the discharge of the duties of the office; however, such successor shall not qualify prior to the predecessor leaving office. No person shall be elected or reelected to a subsequent term under this section until he has submitted to a criminal history record search and submitted to a search of the central registry maintained pursuant to § 63.2-1515 for any founded complaint of child abuse or neglect and reports of such searches have been received by the chairmen of the House Committee for Courts of Justice and the Senate Committee on the Judiciary. If the person has not met the requirement of filing in the preceding calendar year a disclosure form prescribed in § 2.2-3117 or 30-111, he shall also provide a written statement of economic interests on the disclosure form prescribed in § 2.2-3117 to the chairmen of the House Committee for Courts of Justice and the Senate Committee on the Judiciary.
1991, c. 31, § 17-93.1; 1998, c. 872; 2004, c. 452; 2018, c. 578.
Structure Code of Virginia
§ 17.1-300. Composition of Court; quorum; Chief Justice
§ 17.1-301. Presiding justice when Chief Justice absent
§ 17.1-303. Election of successor justice before date of vacancy
§ 17.1-304. Terms and sessions, state of emergency
§ 17.1-306. What may be tried at special session; effect of decisions
§ 17.1-307. Information and recommendations as to other courts
§ 17.1-309. Jurisdiction of writs of mandamus and prohibition
§ 17.1-310. Habeas corpus, appeals, writs of error and supersedeas
§ 17.1-311. Where prohibition and mandamus issued and tried
§ 17.1-312. Where criminal jurisdiction exercised
§ 17.1-314. Executive Secretary
§ 17.1-315. Duties of Executive Secretary
§ 17.1-316. Printing and binding reports of Supreme Court
§ 17.1-317. Printing and distribution of advance sheets of such reports
§ 17.1-319. Custody and distribution of reports of Supreme Court; Court of Appeals
§ 17.1-320. Furnishing reports to law libraries destroyed by fire
§ 17.1-321. Reporter of Court; his appointment and salary
§ 17.1-323. Clerk to deliver opinions to Reporter
§ 17.1-324. Justices of Supreme Court
§ 17.1-325. Clerk and deputy clerks of Supreme Court
§ 17.1-326. Reporter of Supreme Court
§ 17.1-328. Fees charged and collected by Clerk of Supreme Court
§ 17.1-329. Disposition of fees of Clerk of Supreme Court