Va. Code » Title 17.1. Courts of Record » Chapter 6. Costs Generally
Virginia Code

Va. Code Ann. § 17.1-601 (2026)

General rule as to recovery of costs on final judgment

✓ current as of May 2026
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Except when it is otherwise provided, the party for whom final judgment is given in an action or motion shall recover his costs against the opposite party. When the action is against two or more and there is a judgment for, or discontinuance as to, some, but not all of the defendants, unless the court enter of record that there was reasonable cause for making defendants those for whom there is such judgment, or as to whom there is such discontinuance and shall order otherwise, they shall recover their costs.

Code 1950, § 14-175; 1964, c. 386, § 14.1-178; 1998, c. 872.

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 7 cases (3 in the last 5 years), 1999–2024 · leading case: Coady v. Strategic Resources, Inc., 515 S.E.2d 273 (Va. 1999).
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Coady v. Strategic Resources, Inc., 515 S.E.2d 273 (Va. 1999). · cites it 4× “" Here, Coady says, "neither party obtained a judgment against the other in the underlying cases and, therefore, neither should be granted costs against the other.”
Holmes v. LG Marion Corp., 521 S.E.2d 528 (Va. 1999). · cites it 4× “Code §§ 17.1-601 and -626, effective October 1, 1998, are the successor statutes, respectively, and contain no substantive changes.”
Chacey v. Garvey, 781 S.E.2d 357 (Va. 2015). · cites it 2× “" Accordingly, whether Garvey is entitled to attorney's fees depends upon the meaning of the phrase "directly associated legal costs." Garvey argues that her attorney's fees are legal costs that are "directly associated" with the trespass.”
Stepp v. Foster, 524 S.E.2d 866 (Va. 2000). · cites it 2× “In this case, we are not concerned with an award of costs as contemplated by Code § 17.1-601, which provides, in part, that “the party for whom final judgment is given in an action or motion shall recover his costs against the opposite party.”
City of Charlottesville v. Regulus Books, LLC (Va. 2022). · cites it 8× “Code § 17.1-601 provides that generally “the party for whom final judgment is given in an action or motion shall recover his costs against the opposite party.”
City of Norfolk v. Arianna Zoghi (Va. Ct. App. 2024). · cites it 4× “The City cites to Code § 17.1-601 to argue that costs recoverable by a prevailing party being only “those ‘essential for prosecution of the suit, such as filing fees or charges for service of process.”
Haring v. McMichael Taylor Gray, LLC (W.D. Va. 2024). · cites it 4× “Code § 17.1-601. She explained that, as a result, court costs are “automatically sought in any lawsuit filed in Virginia.”
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