Virginia Attorney General Opinions
Free plain-English summaries of attorney general opinions issued in Virginia, with full citations and the original source on every page.
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If I bundle several charges on one Virginia expungement petition and the court only grants expungement on some of them, do I get my filing fee back?
Yes. The Virginia AG read § 19.2-392.2(L) literally: as soon as the court grants expungement on any one of the charges in the petition, the clerk must refund the full filing fee. The clerk has no auth…
Can a Virginia circuit court clerk carry a firearm into the courthouse where they work?
Yes, while in the conduct of their official duties. The AG concluded that the clerk of a circuit court is a 'court officer' as that phrase is used in § 18.2-283.1, the statute that generally bans weap…
Are juvenile records in Virginia automatically expunged when the case was dismissed or nolle prossed?
Yes. Sections 16.1-306 and 16.1-307 require clerks (both juvenile and domestic relations district courts and circuit courts) to automatically expunge dismissed or nolle prossed juvenile proceedings on…
When a Virginia garnishee and debtor live in different counties, who has to make sure the garnishee is served first?
Court clerks (circuit and general district) and sheriffs do not have a duty under Va. Code § 8.01-511 to ensure the garnishee is served before the judgment debtor when they are in different jurisdicti…
Can a Virginia circuit court clerk refuse to forward a court-appointed lawyer's pay request for missing a 'detailed accounting' of time?
The authority to decide whether a court-appointed attorney provided a 'detailed accounting' of time belongs to the presiding judge (or, where additional waivers are sought, the chief judge). The circu…
Is the Virginia term jury list (the pool of potential jurors for a term of circuit court) open to the public, and can lawyers copy it?
No. AG Herring concluded that Virginia term jury lists are not public records and may be inspected only by counsel of record in cases to be tried during the term. Counsel may copy the list only with l…
If a same-sex couple in Virginia put both their names on a deed, did they have to pay the recordation tax that a husband and wife would skip?
No. After the Bostic ruling, AG Herring told circuit court clerks they had to read 'husband and wife' in the recordation tax exemption (Va. Code § 58.1-810.3) to include same-sex spouses, so deeds bet…
When Habitat for Humanity sells a house to a low-income family, does the buyer have to pay Virginia's recordation tax?
Neither party pays. Va. Code § 58.1-811(A)(14) exempts from the recordation tax any deed or lease where the grantor is a 501(c)(3) charity organized and operated primarily to acquire land and purchase…
When is Virginia's regional congestion relief fee triggered: by the date a deed is signed, or by the date it's recorded?
By the date of recordation. After conflicting June 2013 guidance from the Office of the Executive Secretary of the Supreme Court of Virginia, the AG settled the question: § 58.1-802.2's regional conge…
Can a circuit court clerk refuse to docket a certified copy of a federal bankruptcy court judgment because it isn't labeled an 'abstract of judgment'?
No. So long as the certified copy contains the information § 8.01-449 requires, it counts as an authenticated abstract of judgment and the clerk has a mandatory duty to docket it.
Does a Virginia circuit court clerk have to prepare sketch orders for civil cases and personally attend every docket call, or are those tasks discretionary?
No statutory duty to do either. Circuit court clerks' duties are set by statute and the Code does not require them to prepare sketch orders in civil cases or to personally attend civil or criminal doc…
If a Virginia land surveyor brings a boundary or physical survey plat to the courthouse to record (one that doesn't change property lines or create new parcels), can the clerk refuse it because the locality's planners haven't reviewed it first?
No. Virginia's subdivision enabling statutes only authorize local pre-approval for plats that subdivide land, change property lines, or create new parcels. Boundary surveys and physical surveys that d…
Are the psychological reports filed in a Virginia criminal case to determine if a defendant is competent to stand trial open to the public, or are they protected as confidential health records?
Open. Once a court orders a competency evaluation and the evaluator's report is filed with the court, that report becomes part of the court's record and is open to public inspection under § 17.1-208. …
If a Virginia notary signed and stamped electronic documents before the July 2008 e-notary statute kicked in, are those notarizations still legally valid?
Yes. Electronic notarizations done by Virginia notaries before July 1, 2008, are valid if the notary was properly commissioned and complied with applicable law. After July 1, 2008, electronic notarial…
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Attorney general opinions in Virginia are written by the Virginia Attorney General's office in response to questions from state agencies, legislators, and prosecutors. They are not binding like court decisions, but courts and agencies treat them as persuasive guidance on how state law applies. Every opinion above has a plain-English question and short answer, plus a link to the full original text.