# Virginia HB185: Orders closing a proceeding; petitions for review.

Virginia HB185, Orders closing a proceeding; petitions for review., is a 2026 Regular Session House bill sponsored by Leslie Chambers Mehta (Democratic); status signed, last action 2026-04-08 (Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0366)) (as of 2026-10-12).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB185-2026
- As of: 2026-10-12
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: Virginia HB185
- State: Virginia
- Session: 2026 Regular Session
- Title: Orders closing a proceeding; petitions for review.
- Status: signed
- Chamber: House
- Introduced: 2026-01-07
- Last action: 2026-04-08, Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0366)
- Sponsor: Leslie Chambers Mehta (Democratic)
- Cosponsors: 0
- Touches household money: no
- Roll calls: 10 (328 yes, 2 no in all)
- Economic provisions PRIA read: 2

## Summary

Orders closing a proceeding; petitions for review. Provides that when a circuit court acts on or issues an order pertaining to the closure of a proceeding, such order is eligible for immediate appellate review with the Supreme Court of Virginia. The bill further provides that any person aggrieved by such an order may, within 15 days of the entry of such an order, file a petition for review with the Supreme Court of Virginia. As introduced, this bill was a recommendation of the Boyd-Graves Conference.

## Bill overview: provisions PRIA read

- Faster Virginia Supreme Court review of injunctions: benefit, low. After certain circuit court rulings on preliminary injunctions, you can seek fast review by the Virginia Supreme Court. File your petition within 15 days of the order. The clerk assigns it to a three-justice panel, but the Court may decide with more justices. You must serve the other side’s lawyer,…
- Quick review of courtroom closure or sealing: benefit, low. You can get quick Virginia Supreme Court review of orders that close a court proceeding or seal a record. This includes orders that grant or deny closure not otherwise allowed, judges closing on their own, or a circuit court affirming or reversing a lower court’s closure order. File your petition w…

## Sponsors and cosponsors

- Sponsor: Leslie Chambers Mehta (Democratic), House

## Roll call votes

| Date | Chamber | Motion | Result | Yes | No | Other |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 2026-03-12 | House | Senate amendments agreed to by House | pass | 97 | 0 |   |
| 2026-03-11 | Senate | Passed Senate with amendments | pass | 40 | 0 |   |
| 2026-03-11 | Senate | Courts of Justice Amendments agreed to | pass | 0 | 0 |   |
| 2026-03-10 | Senate | Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 2nd reading) | pass | 37 | 0 |   |
| 2026-03-10 | Senate | Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote) | pass | 0 | 0 |   |
| 2026-03-09 | Senate | Reported from Finance and Appropriations | pass | 14 | 0 |   |
| 2026-03-04 | Senate | Reported from Courts of Justice with amendments and rereferred to Finance and Appropriations | pass | 14 | 1 |   |
| 2026-02-03 | House | Read third time and passed House | pass | 98 | 0 |   |
| 2026-01-28 | House | Reported from Courts of Justice | pass | 19 | 0 |   |
| 2026-01-21 | House | Subcommittee recommends reporting | pass | 9 | 1 |   |

## Actions (31)

- 2026-04-08: Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0366) (Governor)
- 2026-04-08: Approved by Governor-Chapter 366 (effective 7/1/2026) (Governor)
- 2026-03-31: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB185) (House)
- 2026-03-31: Governor's Action Deadline 11:59 p.m., April 13, 2026 (Governor)
- 2026-03-31: Enrolled Bill communicated to Governor on March 31, 2026 (House)
- 2026-03-31: Signed by Speaker (House)
- 2026-03-30: Bill text as passed House and Senate (HB185ER) (House)
- 2026-03-30: Enrolled (House)
- 2026-03-30: Signed by President (Senate)
- 2026-03-12: Senate amendments agreed to by House (97-Y 0-N 0-A) (House)
- 2026-03-11: Passed Senate with amendments (40-Y 0-N 0-A) (Senate)
- 2026-03-11: Courts of Justice Amendments agreed to (Senate)
- 2026-03-11: Engrossed by Senate as amended (Senate)
- 2026-03-11: Read third time (Senate)
- 2026-03-10: Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote) (Senate)
- 2026-03-10: Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 2nd reading) (37-Y 0-N 0-A) (Senate)
- 2026-03-10: Rules suspended (Senate)
- 2026-03-09: Reported from Finance and Appropriations (14-Y 0-N) (Senate)
- 2026-03-04: Reported from Courts of Justice with amendments and rereferred to Finance and Appropriations (14-Y 1-N) (Senate)
- 2026-02-04: Referred to Committee for Courts of Justice (Senate)
- 2026-02-04: Constitutional reading dispensed (on 1st reading) (Senate)
- 2026-02-03: Read third time and passed House (98-Y 0-N 0-A) (House)
- 2026-02-03: Moved from Uncontested Calendar to Regular Calendar (House)
- 2026-02-02: Read second time and engrossed (House)
- 2026-01-30: Read first time (House)
- 2026-01-28: Reported from Courts of Justice (19-Y 0-N) (House)
- 2026-01-21: Subcommittee recommends reporting (9-Y 1-N) (House)
- 2026-01-20: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (HB185) (House)
- 2026-01-19: Assigned HCJ sub: Civil (House)
- 2026-01-07: Referred to Committee for Courts of Justice (House)
- 2026-01-07: Prefiled and ordered printed; Offered 01-14-2026 26103517D (House)

## Bill text

- Chaptered, 2026-04-08: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1217691.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1217690.PDF)
- Enrolled, 2026-03-30: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1213380.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1213379.PDF)
- Amendment, 2026-03-11: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1206001.HTML)
- Amendment, 2026-03-05: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1196750.HTML)
- Introduced, 2026-01-07: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1082771.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1082770.PDF)

## Related bills

- HB5: Employment; paid sick leave, civil penalties. (signed)
- SB199: Employment; paid sick leave, civil penalties. (signed)
- HB95: Va. Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; landlord remedies, noncompliance with rental agreement. (signed)
- HB1393: Electric utilities; pilot program for energy assistance and weatherization for certain individuals. (signed)
- HB834: Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; fire or casualty damage, termination by landlord. (signed)
- HB675: Protection of employees; coercion or threat based on immigration status, civil penalty. (signed)

## Sources
- [Chaptered (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1217691.HTML)
- [Chaptered (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1217690.PDF)
- [Enrolled (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1213380.HTML)
- [Enrolled (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1213379.PDF)
- [Amendment (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1206001.HTML)
- [Amendment (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1196750.HTML)
- [Introduced (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1082771.HTML)
- [Introduced (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1082770.PDF)

## Related
- [HB5: Employment; paid sick leave, civil penalties.](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB5-2026)
- [SB199: Employment; paid sick leave, civil penalties.](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-SB199-2026)
- [HB95: Va. Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; landlord remedies, noncompliance with…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB95-2026)
- [HB1393: Electric utilities; pilot program for energy assistance and weatherization for…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB1393-2026)
- [HB834: Virginia Residential Landlord and Tenant Act; fire or casualty damage, terminat…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB834-2026)
- [HB675: Protection of employees; coercion or threat based on immigration status, civil…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB675-2026)
- [Virginia bills](https://policyrisk.com/states/virginia/bills)
- [Virginia state hub](https://policyrisk.com/states/virginia)
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Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-HB185-2026 (as of 2026-10-12).