{"formats":[{"name":"JSON","format":"json","url":"\/downloads\/2025\/code-json\/16.1-69.57.json"},{"name":"Plain Text","format":"text","url":"\/downloads\/2025\/code-text\/16.1-69.57.txt"},{"name":"XML","format":"xml","url":"\/downloads\/2025\/code-xml\/16.1-69.57.xml"},{"name":"HTML","format":"html","url":"\/downloads\/2025\/code-html\/16.1-69.57.html"}],"law_id":80700,"edition_id":1,"section_id":80700,"structure_id":15537,"section_number":"16.1-69.57","catch_line":"Destruction of court records","history":"1983, c. 499; 1987, c. 160.","full_text":"The clerk of each district court shall destroy the court records upon expiration of the appropriate retention period as set forth in \u00a7\u00a7 16.1-69.55 and 16.1-69.56 and consistent with the requirements of confidentiality for juvenile records. The Supreme Court shall determine the methods to be used in destroying court records. Likewise, magistrates shall destroy records retained in the office of the magistrate upon the expiration of the appropriate retention period as set forth in \u00a7 16.1-69.56.","order_by":null,"text":{"0":{"id":289286,"text":"The clerk of each district court shall destroy the court records upon expiration of the appropriate retention period as set forth in \u00a7\u00a7 16.1-69.55 and 16.1-69.56 and consistent with the requirements of confidentiality for juvenile records. The Supreme Court shall determine the methods to be used in destroying court records. Likewise, magistrates shall destroy records retained in the office of the magistrate upon the expiration of the appropriate retention period as set forth in \u00a7 16.1-69.56.","type":"section","prefixes":[""],"prefix":"","entire_prefix":"","prefix_anchor":"","level":1}},"ancestry":[{"id":15537,"edition_id":1,"name":"Retention and Disposition of District Court Records","identifier":"6","label":"article","depth":3,"order_by":1,"parent_id":13142,"metadata":{},"date_created":"2026-06-26 03:56:08","date_modified":"2026-06-26 03:56:08","permalink":{"id":162333,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":15537,"identifier":"6","token":"16.1\/4.1\/6","url":"\/16.1\/4.1\/6\/","edition_id":1,"permalink":0,"preferred":1}},{"id":13142,"edition_id":1,"name":"District Courts","identifier":"4.1","label":"chapter","depth":2,"order_by":1,"parent_id":12700,"metadata":{},"date_created":"2026-06-26 03:44:21","date_modified":"2026-06-26 03:44:21","permalink":{"id":161993,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":13142,"identifier":"4.1","token":"16.1\/4.1","url":"\/16.1\/4.1\/","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":59268,"structure_id":15537,"section_number":"16.1-69.53","catch_line":"Definitions; construction of references to period of years","url":"\/16.1-69.53\/","token":"16.1\/4.1\/6\/16.1-69.53","metadata":false},{"id":74208,"structure_id":15537,"section_number":"16.1-69.54","catch_line":"General provisions","url":"\/16.1-69.54\/","token":"16.1\/4.1\/6\/16.1-69.54","metadata":false},{"id":65286,"structure_id":15537,"section_number":"16.1-69.54:1","catch_line":"Request for district court records","url":"\/16.1-69.54_1\/","token":"16.1\/4.1\/6\/16.1-69.54_1","metadata":false},{"id":68420,"structure_id":15537,"section_number":"16.1-69.55","catch_line":"Retention of case records; limitations on enforcement of judgments; extensions","url":"\/16.1-69.55\/","token":"16.1\/4.1\/6\/16.1-69.55","metadata":false},{"id":59876,"structure_id":15537,"section_number":"16.1-69.56","catch_line":"Retention of financial and administrative records","url":"\/16.1-69.56\/","token":"16.1\/4.1\/6\/16.1-69.56","metadata":false},{"id":80700,"structure_id":15537,"section_number":"16.1-69.57","catch_line":"Destruction of court records","url":"\/16.1-69.57\/","token":"16.1\/4.1\/6\/16.1-69.57","metadata":false},{"id":74109,"structure_id":15537,"section_number":"16.1-69.58","catch_line":"Processing, retention and reproduction of court records; retention and destruction of records in which final disposition was entered before January 1, 1985","url":"\/16.1-69.58\/","token":"16.1\/4.1\/6\/16.1-69.58","metadata":false}],"previous_section":{"id":59876,"structure_id":15537,"section_number":"16.1-69.56","catch_line":"Retention of financial and administrative records","url":"\/16.1-69.56\/","token":"16.1\/4.1\/6\/16.1-69.56","metadata":false},"next_section":{"id":74109,"structure_id":15537,"section_number":"16.1-69.58","catch_line":"Processing, retention and reproduction of court records; retention and destruction of records in which final disposition was entered before January 1, 1985","url":"\/16.1-69.58\/","token":"16.1\/4.1\/6\/16.1-69.58","metadata":false},"metadata":false,"official_url":"https:\/\/law.lis.virginia.gov\/vacode\/16.1-69.57\/","history_text":"

This law was first created in 1983. The record of its establishment is cataloged in chapter 499 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 1983 \u201cActs\u201d aren\u2019t available online. It has been modified 1 time. 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. That modification is as follows: in 1987, chapter 160.<\/p>","references":false,"refers_to":[{"id":68420,"section_number":"16.1-69.55","catch_line":"Retention of case records; limitations on enforcement of judgments; extensions","order_by":null,"url":"\/16.1-69.55\/"},{"id":59876,"section_number":"16.1-69.56","catch_line":"Retention of financial and administrative records","order_by":null,"url":"\/16.1-69.56\/"}],"permalink":{"id":162355,"object_type":"law","relational_id":80700,"identifier":"16.1-69.57","token":"16.1\/4.1\/6\/16.1-69.57","url":"\/16.1-69.57\/","edition_id":1,"permalink":0,"preferred":1},"url":"\/16.1-69.57\/","token":"16.1\/4.1\/6\/16.1-69.57","dublin_core":{"Title":"Destruction of court records","Type":"Text","Format":"text\/html","Identifier":"\u00a7 16.1-69.57","Relation":"Code of Virginia"},"html":"\n\t\t\t\t\t\t

The clerk of each district court shall destroy the court records<\/span> upon expiration of the appropriate retention period as set forth in \u00a7\u00a7 16.1-69.55<\/a> and 16.1-69.56<\/a> and consistent with the requirements of confidentiality for juvenile records. The Supreme Court shall determine the methods to be used in destroying court records<\/span>. Likewise, magistrates<\/span> shall destroy records retained in the office of the magistrate<\/span> upon the expiration of the appropriate retention period as set forth in \u00a7 16.1-69.56<\/a>.<\/p><\/section>","plain_text":" CODE OF VIRGINIA\n\nDESTRUCTION OF COURT RECORDS (\u00a7 16.1-69.57)\n\nThe clerk of each district court shall destroy the court records upon expiration\nof the appropriate retention period as set forth in \u00a7\u00a7 16.1-69.55 and\n16.1-69.56 and consistent with the requirements of confidentiality for juvenile\nrecords. The Supreme Court shall determine the methods to be used in destroying\ncourt records. Likewise, magistrates shall destroy records retained in the\noffice of the magistrate upon the expiration of the appropriate retention period\nas set forth in \u00a7 16.1-69.56.\n\nHISTORY: 1983, c. 499; 1987, c. 160.","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}}