{"formats":[{"name":"JSON","format":"json","url":"\/downloads\/2025\/code-json\/16.1-120.json"},{"name":"Plain Text","format":"text","url":"\/downloads\/2025\/code-text\/16.1-120.txt"},{"name":"XML","format":"xml","url":"\/downloads\/2025\/code-xml\/16.1-120.xml"},{"name":"HTML","format":"html","url":"\/downloads\/2025\/code-html\/16.1-120.html"}],"law_id":86020,"edition_id":1,"section_id":86020,"structure_id":16030,"section_number":"16.1-120","catch_line":"Summons in such case","history":"1956, c. 555; 1978, c. 42; 1983, c. 616.","full_text":"If the party making such application shall make and file an affidavit that to the best of his belief such property, money or other personal estate so claimed by such third party is not of greater value than the maximum jurisdictional limits of the court as provided by \u00a7 16.1-77 (1), the judge or clerk of the court shall issue a summons directed to the sheriff of his county or city, as the case may be, requiring him to summon both the creditor and the debtor to appear and show cause why such property, money or other personal estate, or any part thereof, should not be discharged from levy or lien of such execution or distress warrant. A copy of such summons shall be served upon the claimant of the property, money or other personal estate, unless the summons is sued out at his instance. The summons shall be made returnable not less than five days after date of its issuance, and if an earlier day shall have been fixed for the sale of the property, or for the return of any process subjecting such money or other personal estate to a final disposition, the judge shall make and endorse on the summons an order requiring the postponement of the sale, or the hearing to be had on such process, until after the return day of the summons.","order_by":null,"text":{"0":{"id":308069,"text":"If the party making such application shall make and file an affidavit that to the best of his belief such property, money or other personal estate so claimed by such third party is not of greater value than the maximum jurisdictional limits of the court as provided by \u00a7 16.1-77 (1), the judge or clerk of the court shall issue a summons directed to the sheriff of his county or city, as the case may be, requiring him to summon both the creditor and the debtor to appear and show cause why such property, money or other personal estate, or any part thereof, should not be discharged from levy or lien of such execution or distress warrant. A copy of such summons shall be served upon the claimant of the property, money or other personal estate, unless the summons is sued out at his instance. The summons shall be made returnable not less than five days after date of its issuance, and if an earlier day shall have been fixed for the sale of the property, or for the return of any process subjecting such money or other personal estate to a final disposition, the judge shall make and endorse on the summons an order requiring the postponement of the sale, or the hearing to be had on such process, until after the return day of the summons.","type":"section","prefixes":[""],"prefix":"","entire_prefix":"","prefix_anchor":"","level":1}},"ancestry":[{"id":16030,"edition_id":1,"name":"Trying Title to Property Levied on Under Distress or Execution","identifier":"4","label":"article","depth":3,"order_by":1,"parent_id":13175,"metadata":{},"date_created":"2026-06-26 04:04:16","date_modified":"2026-06-26 04:04:16","permalink":{"id":162633,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":16030,"identifier":"4","token":"16.1\/6\/4","url":"\/16.1\/6\/4\/","edition_id":1,"permalink":0,"preferred":1}},{"id":13175,"edition_id":1,"name":"Venue, Jurisdiction and Procedure in Civil Matters","identifier":"6","label":"chapter","depth":2,"order_by":1,"parent_id":12700,"metadata":{},"date_created":"2026-06-26 03:44:23","date_modified":"2026-06-26 03:44:23","permalink":{"id":162373,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":13175,"identifier":"6","token":"16.1\/6","url":"\/16.1\/6\/","edition_id":1,"permalink":0,"preferred":1}},{"id":12700,"edition_id":1,"name":"Courts Not of Record","identifier":"16.1","label":"title","depth":1,"order_by":1,"parent_id":null,"metadata":{},"date_created":"2026-06-26 03:43:49","date_modified":"2026-06-26 03:43:49","permalink":{"id":160919,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":12700,"identifier":"16.1","token":"16.1","url":"\/16.1\/","edition_id":1,"permalink":0,"preferred":1}}],"structure_contents":[{"id":69182,"structure_id":16030,"section_number":"16.1-119","catch_line":"Proceedings to try title to property levied on under distress or execution","url":"\/16.1-119\/","token":"16.1\/6\/4\/16.1-119","metadata":false},{"id":86020,"structure_id":16030,"section_number":"16.1-120","catch_line":"Summons in such case","url":"\/16.1-120\/","token":"16.1\/6\/4\/16.1-120","metadata":false},{"id":62809,"structure_id":16030,"section_number":"16.1-121","catch_line":"Order after hearing","url":"\/16.1-121\/","token":"16.1\/6\/4\/16.1-121","metadata":false},{"id":73452,"structure_id":16030,"section_number":"16.1-122","catch_line":"Appeal","url":"\/16.1-122\/","token":"16.1\/6\/4\/16.1-122","metadata":false}],"previous_section":{"id":69182,"structure_id":16030,"section_number":"16.1-119","catch_line":"Proceedings to try title to property levied on under distress or execution","url":"\/16.1-119\/","token":"16.1\/6\/4\/16.1-119","metadata":false},"next_section":{"id":62809,"structure_id":16030,"section_number":"16.1-121","catch_line":"Order after hearing","url":"\/16.1-121\/","token":"16.1\/6\/4\/16.1-121","metadata":false},"metadata":false,"official_url":"https:\/\/law.lis.virginia.gov\/vacode\/16.1-120\/","history_text":"

This law was first created in 1956. The record of its establishment is cataloged in chapter 555 of that year\u2019s edition of \u201cActs of Assembly,\u201d the annual state publication listing all changes made to the Code of Virginia in that year. Unfortunately, the 1956 \u201cActs\u201d aren\u2019t available online. It has been modified 2 times. Those modifications are cataloged by \u201cThe Acts of Assembly,\u201d a state publication, by year and chapter. Those modifications that can be read on the General Assembly\u2019s website will be linked accordingly. Those modifications are as follows: in 1978, chapter 42; in 1983, chapter 616.<\/p>","references":false,"refers_to":[{"id":72168,"section_number":"16.1-77","catch_line":"Civil jurisdiction of general district courts; amending amount of claim","order_by":null,"url":"\/16.1-77\/"}],"permalink":{"id":162639,"object_type":"law","relational_id":86020,"identifier":"16.1-120","token":"16.1\/6\/4\/16.1-120","url":"\/16.1-120\/","edition_id":1,"permalink":0,"preferred":1},"url":"\/16.1-120\/","token":"16.1\/6\/4\/16.1-120","dublin_core":{"Title":"Summons in such case","Type":"Text","Format":"text\/html","Identifier":"\u00a7 16.1-120","Relation":"Code of Virginia"},"html":"\n\t\t\t\t\t\t

If the party<\/span> making such application shall make and file an affidavit<\/span> that to the best of his belief such property, money or other personal estate so claimed by such third party<\/span> is not of greater value than the maximum jurisdictional limits of the court<\/span> as provided by \u00a7 16.1-77<\/a> (1), the judge<\/span> or clerk of the court<\/span> shall issue<\/span> a summons<\/span> directed to the sheriff of his county or city, as the case may be, requiring him to summon both the creditor<\/span> and the debtor to appear and show cause why such property, money or other personal estate, or any part thereof, should not be discharged from levy<\/span> or lien<\/span> of such execution or distress warrant. A copy of such summons<\/span> shall be served upon the claimant of the property, money or other personal estate, unless the summons<\/span> is sued out at his instance. The summons<\/span> shall be made returnable not less than five days after date of its issuance, and if an earlier day shall have been fixed for the sale of the property, or for the return of any process subjecting such money or other personal estate to a final disposition<\/span>, the judge<\/span> shall make and endorse on the summons<\/span> an order<\/span> requiring the postponement of the sale, or the hearing<\/span> to be had on such process, until after the return day of the summons<\/span>.<\/p><\/section>","plain_text":" CODE OF VIRGINIA\n\nSUMMONS IN SUCH CASE (\u00a7 16.1-120)\n\nIf the party making such application shall make and file an affidavit that to\nthe best of his belief such property, money or other personal estate so claimed\nby such third party is not of greater value than the maximum jurisdictional\nlimits of the court as provided by \u00a7 16.1-77 (1), the judge or clerk of the\ncourt shall issue a summons directed to the sheriff of his county or city, as\nthe case may be, requiring him to summon both the creditor and the debtor to\nappear and show cause why such property, money or other personal estate, or any\npart thereof, should not be discharged from levy or lien of such execution or\ndistress warrant. A copy of such summons shall be served upon the claimant of\nthe property, money or other personal estate, unless the summons is sued out at\nhis instance. The summons shall be made returnable not less than five days after\ndate of its issuance, and if an earlier day shall have been fixed for the sale\nof the property, or for the return of any process subjecting such money or other\npersonal estate to a final disposition, the judge shall make and endorse on the\nsummons an order requiring the postponement of the sale, or the hearing to be\nhad on such process, until after the return day of the summons.\n\nHISTORY: 1956, c. 555; 1978, c. 42; 1983, c. 616.","edition":{"id":1,"name":"2025","slug":"2025","date_created":"2026-06-21 22:39:22","date_modified":"2026-06-21 22:39:22","current":1,"order_by":1,"last_import":null}}