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<law><site_title>Virginia Decoded</site_title><site_url>https://vacode.org</site_url><law_id>62321</law_id><section_number>8.01-367</section_number><catch_line>Indemnifying bond to officer</catch_line><edition url="https://vacode.org/2025/" slug="2025" current="TRUE" last_updated="">2025</edition><structure><unit label="title" level="1" order_by="1" identifier="8.01">Civil Remedies and Procedure</unit><unit label="chapter" level="2" order_by="1" identifier="12">Interpleader; Claims of Third Parties to Property Distrained or Levied On, Etc</unit><unit label="article" level="3" order_by="1" identifier="2">Claims of Third Parties to Property Distrained or Levied on</unit></structure><text>
						<section id="A"><p><span class="prefix-number">A.</span> If any officer levies or is required to <span class="dictionary">levy</span> a fieri facias, an <span class="dictionary">attachment</span>, or a warrant of distress on property, and the officer doubts whether such property is liable to such <span class="dictionary">levy</span>, he may give the <span class="dictionary">plaintiff</span>, his agent or attorney-at-<span class="dictionary">law</span>, notice that an indemnifying <span class="dictionary">bond</span> is required in the case; <span class="dictionary">bond</span> may thereupon be given by any <span class="dictionary">person</span>, with good security, payable to the officer in a <span class="dictionary">penalty</span> equal to the value of the property in the case of a fieri facias or a warrant of distress on property and equal to double the value of the property in case of an <span class="dictionary">attachment</span>, with condition to indemnify him against all damage which he may <span class="dictionary">sustain</span> in consequence of the seizure or sale of such property and to pay to any claimant of such property all damage which he may <span class="dictionary">sustain</span> in consequence of such seizure or sale, and also to warrant and defend to any purchaser of the property such estate or interest therein as is sold. If the officer has performed more than one <span class="dictionary">levy</span> for a single <span class="dictionary">plaintiff</span>, the officer may permit the <span class="dictionary">plaintiff</span> to give a single indemnifying <span class="dictionary">bond</span> for such levies, provided that any such <span class="dictionary">bond</span> shall be in a <span class="dictionary">penalty</span> amount not less than the aggregate sum of the <span class="dictionary">penalty</span> amounts of the <span class="dictionary">bonds</span> required had the levies been bonded individually.
			Provided, however, that when the property claimed to be liable by virtue of the process aforesaid is in the <span class="dictionary">possession</span> of any of the parties against whom such process was issued but is claimed by any other <span class="dictionary">person</span> or is claimed to belong to any other <span class="dictionary">person</span>, the officer having such process in his hands to be executed shall proceed to execute the same notwithstanding such claim unless the claimant of the property or someone for him shall give a suspending <span class="dictionary">bond</span> as provided by &#xA7; <a class="law" title="Claimant may give suspending bond; proceedings to have title settled; action on indemnifying or suspending bond" href="/8.01-370/">8.01-370</a> and shall within 30 days after such <span class="dictionary">bond</span> is given proceed to have the title to the property settled in accordance with the provisions of this chapter. And in case such claimant or someone for him fails to give such suspending <span class="dictionary">bond</span>, or having given such <span class="dictionary">bond</span> fails to have such proceedings instituted to settle the title thereto, the claimant shall be barred from asserting such claim to the property and the officer shall proceed to execute the process, and the officer who executes such process shall not be liable to any such claimant for any <span class="dictionary">damages</span> resulting from the proper execution of such process as is required by this section. If an indemnifying <span class="dictionary">bond</span> is not given within a reasonable time after such notice, the officer may refuse to <span class="dictionary">levy</span> on such property, or may restore it to the <span class="dictionary">person</span> from whose <span class="dictionary">possession</span> it was taken. If such <span class="dictionary">bond</span> is given, the officer shall proceed to <span class="dictionary">levy</span> (i) if he has not already done so, or (ii) if necessary to restore a <span class="dictionary">levy</span> previously released. <a id="paragraph-227334" class="section-permalink" href="https://vacode.org/8.01-367/#A"><i class="fa fa-link"/></a></p></section>
						<section id="B"><p><span class="prefix-number">B.</span> The Commonwealth shall not be required to give an indemnifying <span class="dictionary">bond</span> under the provisions of this section. <a id="paragraph-227335" class="section-permalink" href="https://vacode.org/8.01-367/#B"><i class="fa fa-link"/></a></p></section></text><history>Code 1950, &#xA7; 8-229; 1968, c. 490; 1972, c. 327; 1977, c. 617; 2005, c. 690; 2012, c. 206.</history><metadata></metadata></law>
