{"formats":[{"name":"JSON","format":"json","url":"\/downloads\/2025\/code-json\/57-16.1.json"},{"name":"Plain Text","format":"text","url":"\/downloads\/2025\/code-text\/57-16.1.txt"},{"name":"XML","format":"xml","url":"\/downloads\/2025\/code-xml\/57-16.1.xml"},{"name":"HTML","format":"html","url":"\/downloads\/2025\/code-html\/57-16.1.html"}],"law_id":72450,"edition_id":1,"section_id":72450,"structure_id":13735,"section_number":"57-16.1","catch_line":"Property of unincorporated church held by corporation","history":"2005, cc. 772, 928.","full_text":"Whenever the laws, rules, or ecclesiastic polity of an unincorporated church or religious body provide for it to create a corporation to hold, administer, and manage its real and personal property, such corporation shall have the power to (i) acquire by deed, devise, gift, purchase, or otherwise, any real or personal property for any purpose authorized and permitted by the laws, rules, or ecclesiastic polity of the church or body, and not prohibited by the law of the Commonwealth and (ii) hold, improve, mortgage, sell, and convey the same in accordance with such law, rules, and ecclesiastic polity, and in accordance with the law of the Commonwealth.","order_by":null,"text":{"0":{"id":260983,"text":"Whenever the laws, rules, or ecclesiastic polity of an unincorporated church or religious body provide for it to create a corporation to hold, administer, and manage its real and personal property, such corporation shall have the power to (i) acquire by deed, devise, gift, purchase, or otherwise, any real or personal property for any purpose authorized and permitted by the laws, rules, or ecclesiastic polity of the church or body, and not prohibited by the law of the Commonwealth and (ii) hold, improve, mortgage, sell, and convey the same in accordance with such law, rules, and ecclesiastic polity, and in accordance with the law of the Commonwealth.","type":"section","prefixes":[""],"prefix":"","entire_prefix":"","prefix_anchor":"","level":1}},"ancestry":[{"id":13735,"edition_id":1,"name":"Property Held for Religious Purposes","identifier":"2","label":"article","depth":3,"order_by":1,"parent_id":13734,"metadata":{},"date_created":"2026-06-26 03:45:44","date_modified":"2026-06-26 03:45:44","permalink":{"id":251549,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":13735,"identifier":"2","token":"57\/2\/2","url":"\/57\/2\/2\/","edition_id":1,"permalink":0,"preferred":1}},{"id":13734,"edition_id":1,"name":"Church Property; Benevolent Associations and Objects","identifier":"2","label":"chapter","depth":2,"order_by":1,"parent_id":13324,"metadata":{},"date_created":"2026-06-26 03:45:44","date_modified":"2026-06-26 03:45:44","permalink":{"id":251525,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":13734,"identifier":"2","token":"57\/2","url":"\/57\/2\/","edition_id":1,"permalink":0,"preferred":1}},{"id":13324,"edition_id":1,"name":"Religious and Charitable Matters; Cemeteries","identifier":"57","label":"title","depth":1,"order_by":1,"parent_id":null,"metadata":{},"date_created":"2026-06-26 03:44:39","date_modified":"2026-06-26 03:44:39","permalink":{"id":251501,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":13324,"identifier":"57","token":"57","url":"\/57\/","edition_id":1,"permalink":0,"preferred":1}}],"structure_contents":[{"id":56375,"structure_id":13735,"section_number":"57-10","catch_line":"How trustees to hold personal property","url":"\/57-10\/","token":"57\/2\/2\/57-10","metadata":false},{"id":85753,"structure_id":13735,"section_number":"57-11","catch_line":"Suits by and against trustees","url":"\/57-11\/","token":"57\/2\/2\/57-11","metadata":false},{"id":71213,"structure_id":13735,"section_number":"57-12","catch_line":"Repealed","url":"\/57-12\/","token":"57\/2\/2\/57-12","metadata":false},{"id":54734,"structure_id":13735,"section_number":"57-13","catch_line":"Suits by members against trustees to compel proper application of property","url":"\/57-13\/","token":"57\/2\/2\/57-13","metadata":false},{"id":67767,"structure_id":13735,"section_number":"57-14","catch_line":"Suits by members to have land sold or mortgaged","url":"\/57-14\/","token":"57\/2\/2\/57-14","metadata":false},{"id":78728,"structure_id":13735,"section_number":"57-15","catch_line":"Proceedings by trustees or members for similar purposes, exception for certain transfers","url":"\/57-15\/","token":"57\/2\/2\/57-15","metadata":false},{"id":85195,"structure_id":13735,"section_number":"57-15.1","catch_line":"Order may provide that fiscal officer may sign instrument without personal liability","url":"\/57-15.1\/","token":"57\/2\/2\/57-15.1","metadata":false},{"id":81715,"structure_id":13735,"section_number":"57-16","catch_line":"Property held, etc., by ecclesiastical officers","url":"\/57-16\/","token":"57\/2\/2\/57-16","metadata":false},{"id":72450,"structure_id":13735,"section_number":"57-16.1","catch_line":"Property of unincorporated church held by corporation","url":"\/57-16.1\/","token":"57\/2\/2\/57-16.1","metadata":false},{"id":59134,"structure_id":13735,"section_number":"57-17","catch_line":"Conveyance of church land held in adverse possession","url":"\/57-17\/","token":"57\/2\/2\/57-17","metadata":false},{"id":72855,"structure_id":13735,"section_number":"57-7","catch_line":"Repealed","url":"\/57-7\/","token":"57\/2\/2\/57-7","metadata":false},{"id":57368,"structure_id":13735,"section_number":"57-7.1","catch_line":"What transfers for religious purposes valid","url":"\/57-7.1\/","token":"57\/2\/2\/57-7.1","metadata":false},{"id":66631,"structure_id":13735,"section_number":"57-8","catch_line":"Appointment of trustees to effect the purposes of conveyances, etc.; validation of certain appointments","url":"\/57-8\/","token":"57\/2\/2\/57-8","metadata":false},{"id":81504,"structure_id":13735,"section_number":"57-9","catch_line":"How property rights determined on division of church or society","url":"\/57-9\/","token":"57\/2\/2\/57-9","metadata":false}],"previous_section":{"id":81715,"structure_id":13735,"section_number":"57-16","catch_line":"Property held, etc., by ecclesiastical officers","url":"\/57-16\/","token":"57\/2\/2\/57-16","metadata":false},"next_section":{"id":59134,"structure_id":13735,"section_number":"57-17","catch_line":"Conveyance of church land held in adverse possession","url":"\/57-17\/","token":"57\/2\/2\/57-17","metadata":false},"metadata":false,"official_url":"https:\/\/law.lis.virginia.gov\/vacode\/57-16.1\/","history_text":"

This law was first created in 2005. The record of its establishment is cataloged in chapters 772<\/a> and 928<\/a> 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.<\/p>","references":[{"id":56375,"section_number":"57-10","catch_line":"How trustees to hold personal property","order_by":null,"url":"\/57-10\/"},{"id":78728,"section_number":"57-15","catch_line":"Proceedings by trustees or members for similar purposes, exception for certain transfers","order_by":null,"url":"\/57-15\/"},{"id":69202,"section_number":"57-27.1:1","catch_line":"Family cemeteries; interment rights of immediate family members and descendants","order_by":null,"url":"\/57-27.1_1\/"},{"id":57368,"section_number":"57-7.1","catch_line":"What transfers for religious purposes valid","order_by":null,"url":"\/57-7.1\/"},{"id":64424,"section_number":"58.1-3606","catch_line":"Property exempt from taxation by classification","order_by":null,"url":"\/58.1-3606\/"},{"id":69637,"section_number":"58.1-3617","catch_line":"Churches and religious bodies","order_by":null,"url":"\/58.1-3617\/"},{"id":86914,"section_number":"58.1-811","catch_line":"(Contingent effective date \u2014 see note) Exemptions","order_by":null,"url":"\/58.1-811\/"}],"refers_to":false,"permalink":{"id":251583,"object_type":"law","relational_id":72450,"identifier":"57-16.1","token":"57\/2\/2\/57-16.1","url":"\/57-16.1\/","edition_id":1,"permalink":0,"preferred":1},"url":"\/57-16.1\/","token":"57\/2\/2\/57-16.1","dublin_core":{"Title":"Property of unincorporated church held by corporation","Type":"Text","Format":"text\/html","Identifier":"\u00a7 57-16.1","Relation":"Code of Virginia"},"html":"\n\t\t\t\t\t\t

Whenever the laws<\/span>, rules, or ecclesiastic polity of an unincorporated church or religious body provide for it to create a corporation to hold, administer, and manage its real and personal property, such corporation shall have the power to (i) acquire by deed, devise, gift, purchase, or otherwise, any real or personal property for any purpose authorized and permitted by the laws<\/span>, rules, or ecclesiastic polity of the church or body, and not prohibited by the law<\/span> of the Commonwealth and (ii) hold, improve, mortgage, sell, and convey the same in accordance with such law<\/span>, rules, and ecclesiastic polity, and in accordance with the law<\/span> of the Commonwealth.<\/p><\/section>","plain_text":" CODE OF VIRGINIA\n\nPROPERTY OF UNINCORPORATED CHURCH HELD BY CORPORATION (\u00a7 57-16.1)\n\nWhenever the laws, rules, or ecclesiastic polity of an unincorporated church or\nreligious body provide for it to create a corporation to hold, administer, and\nmanage its real and personal property, such corporation shall have the power to\n(i) acquire by deed, devise, gift, purchase, or otherwise, any real or personal\nproperty for any purpose authorized and permitted by the laws, rules, or\necclesiastic polity of the church or body, and not prohibited by the law of the\nCommonwealth and (ii) hold, improve, mortgage, sell, and convey the same in\naccordance with such law, rules, and ecclesiastic polity, and in accordance with\nthe law of the Commonwealth.\n\nHISTORY: 2005, cc. 772, 928.","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}}