Subject to the provisions of this article, the Commonwealth shall be liable for claims for money only accruing on or after July 1, 1982, and any transportation district shall be liable for claims for money only accruing on or after July 1, 1986, on account of damage to or loss of property or personal injury or death caused by the negligent or wrongful act or omission of any employee while acting within the scope of his employment under circumstances where the Commonwealth or transportation district, if a private person, would be liable to the claimant for such damage, loss, injury or death. However, except to the extent that a transportation district contracts to do so pursuant to § 33.2-1919, neither the Commonwealth nor any transportation district shall be liable for interest prior to judgment or for punitive damages. The amount recoverable by any claimant shall not exceed (i) $25,000 for causes of action accruing prior to July 1, 1988, $75,000 for causes of action accruing on or after July 1, 1988, or $100,000 for causes of action accruing on or after July 1, 1993, or (ii) the maximum limits of any liability policy maintained to insure against such negligence or other tort, if such policy is in force at the time of the act or omission complained of, whichever is greater, exclusive of interest and costs.
Notwithstanding any provision hereof, the individual immunity of judges, the Attorney General, attorneys for the Commonwealth, and other public officers, their agents and employees from tort claims for damages is hereby preserved to the extent and degree that such persons presently are immunized. Any recovery based on the following claims are hereby excluded from the provisions of this article:
1. Any claim against the Commonwealth based upon an act or omission which occurred prior to July 1, 1982.
1a. Any claim against a transportation district based upon an act or omission which occurred prior to July 1, 1986.
2. Any claim based upon an act or omission of the General Assembly or district commission of any transportation district, or any member or staff thereof acting in his official capacity, or to the legislative function of any agency subject to the provisions of this article.
3. Any claim based upon an act or omission of any court of the Commonwealth, or any member thereof acting in his official capacity, or to the judicial functions of any agency subject to the provisions of this article.
4. Any claim based upon an act or omission of an officer, agent or employee of any agency of government in the execution of a lawful order of any court.
5. Any claim arising in connection with the assessment or collection of taxes.
6. Any claim arising out of the institution or prosecution of any judicial or administrative proceeding, even if without probable cause.
7. Any claim by an inmate of a state correctional facility, as defined in § 53.1-1, unless the claimant verifies under oath, by affidavit, that he has exhausted his remedies under the adult institutional inmate grievance procedures promulgated by the Department of Corrections. The time for filing the notice of tort claim shall be tolled during the pendency of the grievance procedure.
Nothing contained herein shall operate to reduce or limit the extent to which the Commonwealth or any transportation district, agency or employee was deemed liable for negligence as of July 1, 1982, nor shall any provision of this article be applicable to any county, city or town in the Commonwealth or be so construed as to remove or in any way diminish the sovereign immunity of any county, city or town in the Commonwealth.
1981, c. 449; 1982, c. 397; 1986, c. 584; 1988, c. 884; 1989, c. 446; 1993, c. 481; 1998, cc. 203, 820; 2007, c. 250.
Structure Code of Virginia
Title 8.01 - Civil Remedies and Procedure
§ 8.01-25. Survival of causes of action
§ 8.01-26. Assignment of causes of action
§ 8.01-27. Civil action on note or writing promising to pay money
§ 8.01-27.2. Civil recovery for giving bad check
§ 8.01-27.3. Evidence in actions regarding issuance of bad check
§ 8.01-27.4. Civil recovery for professional services
§ 8.01-30. Procedure in actions on contracts made by several persons
§ 8.01-31. Accounting in equity
§ 8.01-32. Action on lost evidences of debt
§ 8.01-33. Equitable relief in certain cases
§ 8.01-34. When contribution among wrongdoers enforced
§ 8.01-35. Damages for loss of income not diminished by reimbursement
§ 8.01-35.1. Effect of release or covenant not to sue in respect to liability and contribution
§ 8.01-37. Recovery of lost wages in action for injuries to emancipated infant
§ 8.01-37.1. Claims for medical services provided by United States; proof of reasonable value
§ 8.01-38. Tort liability of hospitals
§ 8.01-38.1. Limitation on recovery of punitive damages
§ 8.01-40.1. Action for injury resulting from violation of Computer Crimes Act; limitations
§ 8.01-40.2. Unsolicited transmission of advertising materials by facsimile machine
§ 8.01-40.3. Unauthorized dissemination, etc., of criminal history record information; civil action
§ 8.01-41. Wrongful distraint, attachment
§ 8.01-42. Loss or injury to clothing in dyeing, dry cleaning, or laundering
§ 8.01-42.1. Civil action for racial, religious, or ethnic harassment, violence or vandalism
§ 8.01-42.2. Liability of guest for hotel damage
§ 8.01-42.3. Civil action for stalking
§ 8.01-42.4. Civil action for trafficking in persons
§ 8.01-42.5. Civil action for female genital mutilation
§ 8.01-43. Action against parent for damage to public property by minor
§ 8.01-44. Action against parent for damage to private property by minor
§ 8.01-44.1. Immunity from civil liability of members of certain committees, etc.
§ 8.01-44.2. Action against physician for vaccine-related injury or death
§ 8.01-44.3. Divulgence of communications by qualified interpreters and communications assistants
§ 8.01-44.4. Action for shoplifting and employee theft
§ 8.01-44.5. Punitive damages for persons injured by intoxicated drivers
§ 8.01-44.6. Action for injury to cemetery property
§ 8.01-44.7. Action for tampering with metering device and diverting service
§ 8.01-45. Action for insulting words
§ 8.01-46. Justification and mitigation of damages
§ 8.01-46.2. Civil action for dissemination of intimate images to another; penalty
§ 8.01-47. Immunity of persons investigating or reporting certain incidents at schools
§ 8.01-48. Mitigation in actions against newspapers, etc.
§ 8.01-49. Defamatory statements in radio and television broadcasts
§ 8.01-49.1. Liability for defamatory material on the Internet
§ 8.01-50. Action for death by wrongful act; how and when to be brought
§ 8.01-50.1. Certification of expert witness opinion at time of service of process
§ 8.01-51. No action when deceased has compromised claim
§ 8.01-52.1. Admissibility of expressions of sympathy
§ 8.01-53. Class and beneficiaries; when determined
§ 8.01-54. Judgment to distribute recovery when verdict fails to do so
§ 8.01-55. Compromise of claim for death by wrongful act
§ 8.01-56. When right of action not to determine nor action to abate
§ 8.01-57. Liability of railroads for injury to certain employees
§ 8.01-58. Contributory negligence no bar to recovery; violation of safety appliance acts
§ 8.01-59. Assumption of risk; violation of safety appliance acts
§ 8.01-60. Contracts exempting from liability void; set-off of insurance
§ 8.01-61. Definition of "common carrier" as used in article
§ 8.01-62. Action may embrace liability under both State and federal acts
§ 8.01-63. Liability for death or injury to guest in motor vehicle
§ 8.01-64. Liability for negligence of minor
§ 8.01-65. Defense of lack of consent of owner
§ 8.01-66. Recovery of damages for loss of use of vehicle
§ 8.01-66.1. Remedy for arbitrary refusal of motor vehicle insurance claim
§ 8.01-66.2. Lien against person whose negligence causes injury
§ 8.01-66.3. Lien inferior to claim of attorney or personal representative
§ 8.01-66.5. Written notice required
§ 8.01-66.6. Liability for reasonable charges for services
§ 8.01-66.7. Hearing and disposal of claim of unreasonableness
§ 8.01-66.8. Petition to enforce lien
§ 8.01-66.9:1. Lien against recovery for medical treatment provided to prisoner
§ 8.01-66.10. Death claims settled by compromise or suit
§ 8.01-66.11. Necessity for settlement or judgment
§ 8.01-66.12. Term physician to include chiropractor
§ 8.01-67. Definitions; persons under a disability; fiduciary
§ 8.01-69. Commencement of suit; parties
§ 8.01-72. When death to abate such suit
§ 8.01-73. Guardian ad litem to be appointed
§ 8.01-74. Leases on behalf of persons under disability; new leases
§ 8.01-75. Who not to be purchaser
§ 8.01-76. How proceeds from disposition to be secured and applied; when same may be paid over
§ 8.01-77. What proceeds of sale to pass as real estate
§ 8.01-78. Alternate procedure for sale of real estate of person under disability
§ 8.01-79. Same; reference of petition to commissioner
§ 8.01-80. Same; action of court on report; application of proceeds of transaction
§ 8.01-81.1. Determination of value
§ 8.01-83. Allotment to one or more parties, or sale, in lieu of partition
§ 8.01-83.1. Open-market sale, sealed bids, or auction
§ 8.01-83.2. Notice by posting
§ 8.01-84. Application of proceeds of sale to payment of lien
§ 8.01-85. Disposition of share in proceeds of person under disability
§ 8.01-87. Validation of certain partitions prior to act of 1922
§ 8.01-88. Decree of partition to vest legal title
§ 8.01-89. When proceeds of sale deemed personal estate
§ 8.01-90. When name or share of parties unknown
§ 8.01-91. Effect of partition or sale on lessee's rights
§ 8.01-92. Allowance of attorneys' fees out of unrepresented shares
§ 8.01-93. Partition of goods, etc., by sale, if necessary
§ 8.01-94. When sold, leased or exchanged
§ 8.01-95. Procedure in such case
§ 8.01-96. Decree for sale; how made; bond of commissioner
§ 8.01-97. Delinquent taxes to be ascertained
§ 8.01-98. Sales of land when purchase price insufficient to pay taxes, etc.
§ 8.01-99. Bond required of special commissioner for sale
§ 8.01-100. Liability of clerk for false certificate or failure to give bond
§ 8.01-101. Purchasers relieved of liability for purchase money paid to such commissioner
§ 8.01-102. Purchasers not required to see to application of purchase money
§ 8.01-105. Rule against special commissioner, purchaser, etc., for judgment for amounts due
§ 8.01-106. How cause heard upon rule and judgment rendered
§ 8.01-107. Trial by jury of issues made upon rule
§ 8.01-108. When sureties of commissioner, purchaser, etc., proceeded against by rule
§ 8.01-110. Appointment of special commissioner to execute deed, etc.; effect of deed
§ 8.01-111. What such deed to show
§ 8.01-112. Reinstatement of cause to appoint special commissioner to make deed
§ 8.01-113. When title of purchaser at judicial sale not to be disturbed
§ 8.01-115. Bond required as prerequisite
§ 8.01-116. Return of property to defendant or other claimant
§ 8.01-117. Exceptions to sufficiency of bonds
§ 8.01-120. No verdict as to some items; omission of price or value
§ 8.01-122. Charges for keeping property
§ 8.01-123. Recovery of damages sustained for property withheld during appeal
§ 8.01-124. Motion for judgment in circuit court for unlawful entry or detainer
§ 8.01-125. When summons returnable to circuit court; jury
§ 8.01-128. Verdict and judgment; damages
§ 8.01-129. Appeal from judgment of general district court
§ 8.01-130. Judgment not to bar action of trespass, ejectment, or unlawful detainer
§ 8.01-130.01. Unlawful detainer; expungement
§ 8.01-130.1. Remedy for rent and for use and occupation
§ 8.01-130.2. Who may recover rent or compensation
§ 8.01-130.3. Who is liable for rent
§ 8.01-130.4. When and by whom distress made
§ 8.01-130.5. Procedure for trial on warrant in distress
§ 8.01-130.8. Review of decision to issue ex parte order or process; claim of exemption
§ 8.01-130.10. When goods of a sublessee may be removed from leased premises
§ 8.01-130.11. When officer may enter by force to levy distress or attachment
§ 8.01-130.12. When distress not unlawful because of irregularity, etc.
§ 8.01-130.13. Return of execution; process of sale thereunder
§ 8.01-131. Action of ejectment retained; when and by whom brought
§ 8.01-132. What interest and right plaintiff must have
§ 8.01-133. Who shall be defendants; when and how landlord may defend
§ 8.01-134. How action commenced and prosecuted
§ 8.01-135. What is to be stated in motion for judgment
§ 8.01-136. How premises described
§ 8.01-137. Plaintiff to state how he claims
§ 8.01-138. There may be several counts and several plaintiffs
§ 8.01-139. What proof by plaintiff is sufficient
§ 8.01-140. Effect of reservation in deed; burden of proof
§ 8.01-141. When action by cotenants, etc., against cotenants, what plaintiff to prove
§ 8.01-142. Verdict when action against several defendants
§ 8.01-143. When there may be several judgments against defendants
§ 8.01-144. Recovery of part of premises claimed
§ 8.01-145. When possession of part not possession of whole
§ 8.01-146. When vendee, etc., entitled to conveyance of legal title, vendor cannot recover
§ 8.01-147. When mortgagee or trustee not to recover
§ 8.01-148. Right of defendant to resort to equity not affected
§ 8.01-149. Verdict when jury finds for plaintiffs or any of them
§ 8.01-150. Verdict when any plaintiff has no right
§ 8.01-151. How verdict to specify premises recovered
§ 8.01-152. How verdict to specify undivided interest or share
§ 8.01-153. Verdict to specify estate of plaintiff
§ 8.01-154. When right of plaintiff expires before trial, what judgment entered
§ 8.01-155. How judgment for plaintiff entered
§ 8.01-158. How claim of plaintiff for profits and damages assessed
§ 8.01-159. When court to assess damages
§ 8.01-160. Defendant to give notice of claim for improvements
§ 8.01-162. Postponement of assessment and allowance
§ 8.01-163. Judgment to be conclusive
§ 8.01-164. Recovery of mesne profits, etc., not affected
§ 8.01-165. Writ of right, etc., abolished
§ 8.01-166. How defendant may apply therefor, and have judgment suspended
§ 8.01-167. How damages of plaintiff assessed
§ 8.01-169. How value of improvements determined in favor of defendant
§ 8.01-170. If allowance for improvements exceed damages, what to be done
§ 8.01-171. Verdict for balance, after offsetting damages against improvements
§ 8.01-172. Balance for defendant a lien on the land
§ 8.01-173. How tenant for life, paying for improvements, reimbursed
§ 8.01-174. Exception as to mortgagees and trustees
§ 8.01-176. How payment of such value to be made by defendant; when land sold therefor
§ 8.01-177. When such value to be deemed real estate
§ 8.01-178. When and how defendant, if evicted, may recover from plaintiff amount paid
§ 8.01-178.1. Waste; who is liable
§ 8.01-178.2. Civil action for waste; double damages
§ 8.01-178.3. Waste for tenant to sell or remove manure from leased premises
§ 8.01-178.4. Waste committed during pendency of action
§ 8.01-179. Motion for judgment to establish boundary lines
§ 8.01-180. Parties defendant; pleadings
§ 8.01-182. Claims to rents, etc., not considered
§ 8.01-183. Recordation and effect of judgment
§ 8.01-184. Power to issue declaratory judgments
§ 8.01-184.1. Declaratory judgment to adjudicate constitutional nexus
§ 8.01-191. Construction of article
§ 8.01-192. How claims to be prosecuted
§ 8.01-193. Defense and hearing
§ 8.01-194. Jury may be impaneled; judgment
§ 8.01-195. No judgment to be paid without special appropriation
§ 8.01-195.3. Commonwealth, transportation district or locality liable for damages in certain cases
§ 8.01-195.5. Settlement of certain cases
§ 8.01-195.7. Statute of limitations
§ 8.01-195.8. Release of further claims
§ 8.01-195.9. Claims evaluation program
§ 8.01-195.10. Purpose; action by the General Assembly required; definitions
§ 8.01-195.11. Compensation for wrongful incarceration
§ 8.01-195.12. Conditions for continued compensation
§ 8.01-195.13. Compensation for certain intentional acts
§ 8.01-196. Comptroller to institute proceedings
§ 8.01-197. In what name; when not to abate
§ 8.01-198. Action, against whom instituted
§ 8.01-199. Judgment, nature of
§ 8.01-200. Mistakes against State corrected
§ 8.01-201. Execution; real estate to be sold
§ 8.01-202. Execution, to whom issued
§ 8.01-203. Goods and chattels liable before real estate
§ 8.01-204. Notice of sale of real estate; when sale to be made
§ 8.01-207. Who to collect purchase money and make deed; disposition of proceeds of sale
§ 8.01-208. When successor of officer to make deed
§ 8.01-209. Bond for purchase money to have force of judgment
§ 8.01-210. Judgment against deceased obligors
§ 8.01-211. When venditioni exponas issued to sheriff of adjacent county; what to contain
§ 8.01-212. Officer to deliver to sheriff goods and chattels levied on
§ 8.01-213. Where same to be sold
§ 8.01-214. Where real estate to be sold
§ 8.01-215. Return of officer when sale not made because of prior encumbrance
§ 8.01-216. Comptroller's power to adjust old claims
§ 8.01-216.3. False claims; civil penalty
§ 8.01-216.4. Attorney General; investigation, civil action
§ 8.01-216.5. Civil actions filed by private persons; Commonwealth may intervene
§ 8.01-216.6. Rights of private plaintiff and Commonwealth
§ 8.01-216.7. Award to private plaintiff
§ 8.01-216.9. Procedure; statute of limitations
§ 8.01-216.10. Civil investigative demands; issuance; sharing information
§ 8.01-216.11. Civil investigative demands; contents and deadlines
§ 8.01-216.12. Civil investigative demands; protected material or information
§ 8.01-216.13. Civil investigative demands; service and jurisdiction
§ 8.01-216.14. Civil investigative demands; documentary material
§ 8.01-216.15. Civil investigative demands; interrogatories
§ 8.01-216.16. Civil investigative demands; oral examinations
§ 8.01-216.17. Civil investigative demands; custodian of documents; answers
§ 8.01-216.18. Civil investigative demands; judicial proceedings for noncompliance
§ 8.01-216.19. Application of the Rules of the Supreme Court
§ 8.01-217. How name of person may be changed
§ 8.01-218. Replevin abolished
§ 8.01-219. Effect of judgment in trover
§ 8.01-219.1. Responsibility of possessor of real property for harm to trespasser
§ 8.01-220.1:2. Civil immunity for teachers under certain circumstances
§ 8.01-220.1:3. Immunity for members of church, synagogue or religious body
§ 8.01-220.1:4. Civil immunity for officers and directors of certain nonprofit organizations
§ 8.01-220.1:5. Defense of intra-family immunity abolished for wrongful death actions
§ 8.01-220.2. Spousal liability for medical care
§ 8.01-221. Damages from violation of statute, remedy therefor and penalty
§ 8.01-221.1. Unestablished business damages; lost profits
§ 8.01-221.2. Rescission; undue influence; attorney fees
§ 8.01-223. Lack of privity no defense in certain cases
§ 8.01-223.1. Use of constitutional rights
§ 8.01-225. Persons rendering emergency care, obstetrical services exempt from liability
§ 8.01-225.02. Certain liability protection for health care providers during disasters
§ 8.01-225.1. Immunity for team physicians
§ 8.01-225.2. Immunity for those rendering emergency care to animals
§ 8.01-225.3. Immunity for volunteer first responders en route to an emergency
§ 8.01-226. Duty of care to law-enforcement officers, firefighters, etc.
§ 8.01-226.1. Civil immunity when participating in Lawyers Helping Lawyers
§ 8.01-226.4. Civil immunity for hospice volunteers
§ 8.01-226.5. Immunity for installers and inspectors of child restraint devices
§ 8.01-226.10. Civil immunity for causing the arrest of a person for a bad check
§ 8.01-226.11. Civil immunity for operation of victim notification program
§ 8.01-226.12. Duty of landlord and managing agent with respect to visible mold
§ 8.01-226.13. Limited standing to seek injunctive relief against manufacturing companies
§ 8.01-227. Remedy by motion on certain bonds given or taken by officers; notice
§ 8.01-227.7. Statute of limitations
§ 8.01-227.9. Civil immunity for space flight entities
§ 8.01-227.10. Warning required
§ 8.01-227.12. Warnings and other winter sports area operator requirements
§ 8.01-227.13. Winter sports area trail maps
§ 8.01-227.14. Freestyle terrain
§ 8.01-227.15. Winter sports area vehicles
§ 8.01-227.16. Passenger tramways
§ 8.01-227.19. Assumption of risks
§ 8.01-227.20. Liability of winter sports area operator
§ 8.01-227.21. Common law regarding minors
§ 8.01-227.22. Failure to fulfill duty or responsibility not negligence per se