# Virginia SB369: Civil actions; assignment as business litigation action, requirements, delayed effective date.

Virginia SB369, Civil actions; assignment as business litigation action, requirements, delayed effective date., is a 2026 Regular Session Senate bill sponsored by Jennifer D. Carroll Foy (Democratic); status passed senate, last action 2026-03-02 (Continued to 2027 in Courts of Justice (Voice Vote)) (as of 2026-10-12).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/VA-SB369-2026
- As of: 2026-10-12
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: Virginia SB369
- State: Virginia
- Session: 2026 Regular Session
- Title: Civil actions; assignment as business litigation action, requirements, delayed effective date.
- Status: passed senate
- Chamber: Senate
- Introduced: 2026-01-13
- Last action: 2026-03-02, Continued to 2027 in Courts of Justice (Voice Vote)
- Sponsor: Jennifer D. Carroll Foy (Democratic)
- Cosponsors: 0
- Subjects: Civil
- Touches household money: no
- Roll calls: 8 (98 yes, 7 no in all)
- Economic provisions PRIA read: 0

## Summary

Civil actions; assignment as business litigation action; requirements. Allows counsel for any party or the judge of the circuit court initially assigned to certain civil actions to request to have such action assigned by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Virginia to have such civil action assigned as a business litigation action. The bill provides that an action to be eligible to be considered a business litigation action, the action shall (i) have a minimum amount in controversy of $1,000,000, (ii) present special complexity, including specialized issues or acute litigation management needs, and (iii) fall into one or more of several enumerated categories of civil actions. The bill has a delayed effective date of July 1, 2027.

## Bill overview

No economic impacts identified for this bill.

## Sponsors and cosponsors

- Sponsor: Jennifer D. Carroll Foy (Democratic), Senate

## Roll call votes

| Date | Chamber | Motion | Result | Yes | No | Other |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 2026-03-02 | House | Continued to 2027 in Courts of Justice (Voice Vote) | pass | 0 | 0 |   |
| 2026-02-23 | House | Subcommittee recommends continuing to 2027 (Voice Vote) | pass | 0 | 0 |   |
| 2026-02-16 | Senate | Read third time and passed Senate | pass | 36 | 3 |   |
| 2026-02-13 | Senate | Committee substitute agreed to (Voice Vote) | pass | 0 | 0 |   |
| 2026-02-12 | Senate | Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote) | pass | 0 | 0 |   |
| 2026-02-12 | Senate | Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 1st reading) | pass | 40 | 0 |   |
| 2026-02-11 | Senate | Reported from Finance and Appropriations | pass | 12 | 3 |   |
| 2026-01-28 | Senate | Reported from Courts of Justice with substitute and rereferred to Finance and Appropriations | pass | 10 | 1 | 2 |

## Actions (20)

- 2026-03-02: Continued to 2027 in Courts of Justice (Voice Vote) (House)
- 2026-02-23: Subcommittee recommends continuing to 2027 (Voice Vote) (House)
- 2026-02-19: Assigned HCJ sub: Civil (House)
- 2026-02-19: Referred to Committee for Courts of Justice (House)
- 2026-02-19: Read first time (House)
- 2026-02-19: Placed on Calendar (House)
- 2026-02-16: Read third time and passed Senate (36-Y 3-N 0-A) (Senate)
- 2026-02-13: Committee substitute agreed to (Voice Vote) (Senate)
- 2026-02-13: Engrossed by Senate - committee substitute (Voice Vote) (Senate)
- 2026-02-13: Read second time (Senate)
- 2026-02-12: Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote) (Senate)
- 2026-02-12: Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 1st reading) (40-Y 0-N 0-A) (Senate)
- 2026-02-12: Rules suspended (Senate)
- 2026-02-11: Reported from Finance and Appropriations (12-Y 3-N) (Senate)
- 2026-02-05: Fiscal Impact Statement from Department of Planning and Budget (SB369) (Senate)
- 2026-01-30: Committee substitute printed 26106454D-S1 (Senate)
- 2026-01-28: Senate committee offered (Senate)
- 2026-01-28: Reported from Courts of Justice with substitute and rereferred to Finance and Appropriations (10-Y 1-N 2-A) (Senate)
- 2026-01-13: Referred to Committee for Courts of Justice (Senate)
- 2026-01-13: Prefiled and ordered printed; Offered 01-14-2026 26101724D (Senate)

## Bill text

- Substitute, 2026-01-30: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1104181.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1104180.PDF)
- Substitute, 2026-01-28: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1100345.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1100344.PDF)
- Introduced, 2026-01-13: [HTML](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1089818.HTML), [PDF](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1089817.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
- [Substitute (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1104181.HTML)
- [Substitute (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1104180.PDF)
- [Substitute (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1100345.HTML)
- [Substitute (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1100344.PDF)
- [Introduced (HTML)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1089818.HTML)
- [Introduced (PDF)](https://lis.blob.core.windows.net/files/1089817.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-SB369-2026 (as of 2026-10-12).