Va. Code » Title 16.1. Courts Not of Record » Chapter 6. Venue, Jurisdiction and Procedure in Civil Matters » Article 3. Procedure in Civil Cases
Virginia Code

Va. Code Ann. § 16.1-79 (2026)

Actions brought on warrant

✓ laws through the 2026 session (checked Sept. 2026)
Find cases: SyfertCases citing this section VA-LISlaw.lis.virginia.gov JustiaTitle on Justia CornellLII Search CasesGoogle Scholar

A civil action in a general district court may be brought by warrant directed to the sheriff or to any other person authorized to serve process in such county or city, requiring the person against whom the claim is asserted to appear before the court on a certain day, not exceeding 90 days from the date of service thereof, to answer the complaint of the plaintiff set out in the warrant. After the warrant has been issued and delivered for service it shall not be altered, nor any blank filled, except by order of the court.

1956, c. 555; 1991, c. 26; 2025, c. 349.

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 5 cases, 1967–2018 · leading case: Robert & Bertha Robinson Fam., LLC v. Allen, 810 S.E.2d 48 (Va. 2018).
Sort: Relevance Newest Treatment
Robert & Bertha Robinson Fam., LLC v. Allen, 810 S.E.2d 48 (Va. 2018). · cites it 2× “1, Chapter 6, Article 3, Code §§ 16.1-79 to -118.1, governs the procedures applicable to civil cases in the GDC.”
Brown v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., 52 Va. Cir. 480 (Spotsylvania Cir. Ct. 2000). · cites it 2× “The second source of public policy for Brown’s Bowman claim is Virginia Code §§ 16.1-79 et seq. These statutes deal with civil claims in general district courts.”
Singleton v. Suplizio, 74 Va. Cir. 177 (Prince William Cir. Ct. 2007). · cites it 4× “”); Va. Code Ann. § 16.1-79 (2007) (relating to actions brought on a warrant).”
Samayoa-Bolanos v. Williams, 91 Va. Cir. 106 (Newport News Cir. Ct. 2015). · cites it 3× “It is clear in the general district court code sections that service of process is part of the filing, particularly as it applies to warrants in debt, as, in this case, it is found in Va. Code § 16.1-79. Service of process is required to be served to require a defendant to…”
Rountree Corp. v. Evans, 8 Va. Cir. 477 (Richmond City Cir. Ct. 1967). “Code Sections 16.1-79 and 16.1-86. Section 8-46.”
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.