{"formats":[{"name":"JSON","format":"json","url":"\/downloads\/2025\/code-json\/17.1-308.json"},{"name":"Plain Text","format":"text","url":"\/downloads\/2025\/code-text\/17.1-308.txt"},{"name":"XML","format":"xml","url":"\/downloads\/2025\/code-xml\/17.1-308.xml"},{"name":"HTML","format":"html","url":"\/downloads\/2025\/code-html\/17.1-308.html"}],"law_id":60503,"edition_id":1,"section_id":60503,"structure_id":13211,"section_number":"17.1-308","catch_line":"Court may sit and render final judgment en banc or in divisions; when decision becomes judgment of Court; majority must concur in declaring law unconstitutional; rehearings","history":"Code 1919, \u00a7 5862, \u00a7 17-94; 1938, p. 133; 1971, Ex. Sess., c. 51; 1998, c. 872.","full_text":"The Supreme Court may sit and render final judgment en banc or in divisions, as may be prescribed by rules of the Court not inconsistent with the provisions of this section. No decision shall become the judgment of the Court, however, except on the concurrence of at least three justices, and no law shall be declared unconstitutional under either the Constitution of Virginia or the Constitution of the United States except on the concurrence of at least a majority of all justices of the Supreme Court. If the justices composing any division differ as to the judgment to be rendered in any cause or if any justice of such division, within a time and in a manner to be fixed by the rules of the Court, shall certify that in his opinion any decision of such division of the Court is in conflict with a prior decision of the Court, or of one of the divisions thereof, the case shall be reheard and decided by the Court sitting en banc.","order_by":null,"text":{"0":{"id":221217,"text":"The Supreme Court may sit and render final judgment en banc or in divisions, as may be prescribed by rules of the Court not inconsistent with the provisions of this section. No decision shall become the judgment of the Court, however, except on the concurrence of at least three justices, and no law shall be declared unconstitutional under either the Constitution of Virginia or the Constitution of the United States except on the concurrence of at least a majority of all justices of the Supreme Court. If the justices composing any division differ as to the judgment to be rendered in any cause or if any justice of such division, within a time and in a manner to be fixed by the rules of the Court, shall certify that in his opinion any decision of such division of the Court is in conflict with a prior decision of the Court, or of one of the divisions thereof, the case shall be reheard and decided by the Court sitting en banc.","type":"section","prefixes":[""],"prefix":"","entire_prefix":"","prefix_anchor":"","level":1}},"ancestry":[{"id":13211,"edition_id":1,"name":"Composition, Jurisdiction, etc","identifier":"1","label":"article","depth":3,"order_by":1,"parent_id":13210,"metadata":{},"date_created":"2026-06-26 03:44:27","date_modified":"2026-06-26 03:44:27","permalink":{"id":163483,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":13211,"identifier":"1","token":"17.1\/3\/1","url":"\/17.1\/3\/1\/","edition_id":1,"permalink":0,"preferred":1}},{"id":13210,"edition_id":1,"name":"Supreme Court","identifier":"3","label":"chapter","depth":2,"order_by":1,"parent_id":12766,"metadata":{},"date_created":"2026-06-26 03:44:27","date_modified":"2026-06-26 03:44:27","permalink":{"id":163481,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":13210,"identifier":"3","token":"17.1\/3","url":"\/17.1\/3\/","edition_id":1,"permalink":0,"preferred":1}},{"id":12766,"edition_id":1,"name":"Courts of Record","identifier":"17.1","label":"title","depth":1,"order_by":1,"parent_id":null,"metadata":{},"date_created":"2026-06-26 03:43:52","date_modified":"2026-06-26 03:43:52","permalink":{"id":162799,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":12766,"identifier":"17.1","token":"17.1","url":"\/17.1\/","edition_id":1,"permalink":0,"preferred":1}}],"structure_contents":[{"id":82628,"structure_id":13211,"section_number":"17.1-300","catch_line":"Composition of Court; quorum; Chief Justice","url":"\/17.1-300\/","token":"17.1\/3\/1\/17.1-300","metadata":false},{"id":72959,"structure_id":13211,"section_number":"17.1-301","catch_line":"Presiding justice when Chief Justice absent","url":"\/17.1-301\/","token":"17.1\/3\/1\/17.1-301","metadata":false},{"id":71338,"structure_id":13211,"section_number":"17.1-302","catch_line":"Senior justice","url":"\/17.1-302\/","token":"17.1\/3\/1\/17.1-302","metadata":false},{"id":54219,"structure_id":13211,"section_number":"17.1-303","catch_line":"Election of successor justice before date of vacancy","url":"\/17.1-303\/","token":"17.1\/3\/1\/17.1-303","metadata":false},{"id":83815,"structure_id":13211,"section_number":"17.1-304","catch_line":"Terms and sessions, state of emergency","url":"\/17.1-304\/","token":"17.1\/3\/1\/17.1-304","metadata":false},{"id":83662,"structure_id":13211,"section_number":"17.1-305","catch_line":"Special sessions","url":"\/17.1-305\/","token":"17.1\/3\/1\/17.1-305","metadata":false},{"id":80271,"structure_id":13211,"section_number":"17.1-306","catch_line":"What may be tried at special session; effect of decisions","url":"\/17.1-306\/","token":"17.1\/3\/1\/17.1-306","metadata":false},{"id":72709,"structure_id":13211,"section_number":"17.1-307","catch_line":"Information and recommendations as to other courts","url":"\/17.1-307\/","token":"17.1\/3\/1\/17.1-307","metadata":false},{"id":60503,"structure_id":13211,"section_number":"17.1-308","catch_line":"Court may sit and render final judgment en banc or in divisions; when decision becomes judgment of Court; majority must concur in declaring law unconstitutional; rehearings","url":"\/17.1-308\/","token":"17.1\/3\/1\/17.1-308","metadata":false},{"id":67392,"structure_id":13211,"section_number":"17.1-309","catch_line":"Jurisdiction of writs of mandamus and prohibition","url":"\/17.1-309\/","token":"17.1\/3\/1\/17.1-309","metadata":false},{"id":70980,"structure_id":13211,"section_number":"17.1-310","catch_line":"Habeas corpus, appeals, writs of error and supersedeas","url":"\/17.1-310\/","token":"17.1\/3\/1\/17.1-310","metadata":false},{"id":57165,"structure_id":13211,"section_number":"17.1-311","catch_line":"Where prohibition and mandamus issued and tried","url":"\/17.1-311\/","token":"17.1\/3\/1\/17.1-311","metadata":false},{"id":73210,"structure_id":13211,"section_number":"17.1-312","catch_line":"Where criminal jurisdiction exercised","url":"\/17.1-312\/","token":"17.1\/3\/1\/17.1-312","metadata":false},{"id":80630,"structure_id":13211,"section_number":"17.1-313","catch_line":"Repealed","url":"\/17.1-313\/","token":"17.1\/3\/1\/17.1-313","metadata":false},{"id":81866,"structure_id":13211,"section_number":"17.1-314","catch_line":"Executive Secretary","url":"\/17.1-314\/","token":"17.1\/3\/1\/17.1-314","metadata":false},{"id":58074,"structure_id":13211,"section_number":"17.1-315","catch_line":"Duties of Executive Secretary","url":"\/17.1-315\/","token":"17.1\/3\/1\/17.1-315","metadata":false},{"id":86938,"structure_id":13211,"section_number":"17.1-316","catch_line":"Printing and binding reports of Supreme Court","url":"\/17.1-316\/","token":"17.1\/3\/1\/17.1-316","metadata":false},{"id":73765,"structure_id":13211,"section_number":"17.1-317","catch_line":"Printing and distribution of advance sheets of such reports","url":"\/17.1-317\/","token":"17.1\/3\/1\/17.1-317","metadata":false},{"id":83585,"structure_id":13211,"section_number":"17.1-318","catch_line":"Repealed","url":"\/17.1-318\/","token":"17.1\/3\/1\/17.1-318","metadata":false},{"id":83279,"structure_id":13211,"section_number":"17.1-319","catch_line":"Custody and distribution of reports of Supreme Court; Court of Appeals","url":"\/17.1-319\/","token":"17.1\/3\/1\/17.1-319","metadata":false},{"id":79395,"structure_id":13211,"section_number":"17.1-320","catch_line":"Furnishing reports to law libraries destroyed by fire","url":"\/17.1-320\/","token":"17.1\/3\/1\/17.1-320","metadata":false},{"id":54358,"structure_id":13211,"section_number":"17.1-321","catch_line":"Reporter of Court; his appointment and salary","url":"\/17.1-321\/","token":"17.1\/3\/1\/17.1-321","metadata":false},{"id":60961,"structure_id":13211,"section_number":"17.1-322","catch_line":"Duties","url":"\/17.1-322\/","token":"17.1\/3\/1\/17.1-322","metadata":false},{"id":67635,"structure_id":13211,"section_number":"17.1-323","catch_line":"Clerk to deliver opinions to Reporter","url":"\/17.1-323\/","token":"17.1\/3\/1\/17.1-323","metadata":false}],"previous_section":{"id":72709,"structure_id":13211,"section_number":"17.1-307","catch_line":"Information and recommendations as to other courts","url":"\/17.1-307\/","token":"17.1\/3\/1\/17.1-307","metadata":false},"next_section":{"id":67392,"structure_id":13211,"section_number":"17.1-309","catch_line":"Jurisdiction of writs of mandamus and prohibition","url":"\/17.1-309\/","token":"17.1\/3\/1\/17.1-309","metadata":false},"metadata":false,"official_url":"https:\/\/law.lis.virginia.gov\/vacode\/17.1-308\/","history_text":"<p>The record of this law\u2019s original creation isn\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 1998, chapter <a href=\"https:\/\/legacylis.virginia.gov\/cgi-bin\/legp604.exe?981+ful+CHAP0872\">872<\/a>.<\/p>","references":false,"refers_to":false,"permalink":{"id":163517,"object_type":"law","relational_id":60503,"identifier":"17.1-308","token":"17.1\/3\/1\/17.1-308","url":"\/17.1-308\/","edition_id":1,"permalink":0,"preferred":1},"url":"\/17.1-308\/","token":"17.1\/3\/1\/17.1-308","dublin_core":{"Title":"Court may sit and render final judgment en banc or in divisions; when decision becomes judgment of Court; majority must concur in declaring law unconstitutional; rehearings","Type":"Text","Format":"text\/html","Identifier":"\u00a7 17.1-308","Relation":"Code of Virginia"},"html":"\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<section><p>The Supreme <span class=\"dictionary\">Court<\/span> may sit and render final <span class=\"dictionary\">judgment<\/span> <span class=\"dictionary\">en banc<\/span> or in divisions, as may be prescribed by rules of the <span class=\"dictionary\">Court<\/span> not inconsistent with the provisions of this section. No decision shall become the <span class=\"dictionary\">judgment<\/span> of the <span class=\"dictionary\">Court<\/span>, however, except on the concurrence of at least three justices, and no <span class=\"dictionary\">law<\/span> shall be declared unconstitutional under either the Constitution of Virginia or the Constitution of the United States except on the concurrence of at least a majority of all justices of the Supreme <span class=\"dictionary\">Court<\/span>. If the justices composing any division differ as to the <span class=\"dictionary\">judgment<\/span> to be rendered in any cause or if any justice of such division, within a time and in a manner to be fixed by the rules of the <span class=\"dictionary\">Court<\/span>, shall certify that in his <span class=\"dictionary\">opinion<\/span> any decision of such division of the <span class=\"dictionary\">Court<\/span> is in conflict with a prior decision of the <span class=\"dictionary\">Court<\/span>, or of one of the divisions thereof, the case shall be reheard and decided by the <span class=\"dictionary\">Court<\/span> sitting <span class=\"dictionary\">en banc<\/span>.<\/p><\/section>","plain_text":"                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA\n\nCOURT MAY SIT AND RENDER FINAL JUDGMENT EN BANC OR IN DIVISIONS; WHEN DECISION\nBECOMES JUDGMENT OF COURT; MAJORITY MUST CONCUR IN DECLARING LAW\nUNCONSTITUTIONAL; REHEARINGS (\u00a7 17.1-308)\n\nThe Supreme Court may sit and render final judgment en banc or in divisions, as\nmay be prescribed by rules of the Court not inconsistent with the provisions of\nthis section. No decision shall become the judgment of the Court, however,\nexcept on the concurrence of at least three justices, and no law shall be\ndeclared unconstitutional under either the Constitution of Virginia or the\nConstitution of the United States except on the concurrence of at least a\nmajority of all justices of the Supreme Court. If the justices composing any\ndivision differ as to the judgment to be rendered in any cause or if any justice\nof such division, within a time and in a manner to be fixed by the rules of the\nCourt, shall certify that in his opinion any decision of such division of the\nCourt is in conflict with a prior decision of the Court, or of one of the\ndivisions thereof, the case shall be reheard and decided by the Court sitting en\nbanc.\n\nHISTORY: Code 1919, \u00a7 5862, \u00a7 17-94; 1938, p. 133; 1971, Ex. Sess., c. 51;\n1998, c. 872.","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}}