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<law><site_title>Virginia Decoded</site_title><site_url>https://vacode.org</site_url><law_id>84174</law_id><section_number>8.01-397</section_number><catch_line>Corroboration required and evidence receivable when one party incapable of testifying (subdivision (b)(5) of Supreme Court Rule 2:804 derived from this section)</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="14">Evidence</unit><unit label="article" level="3" order_by="1" identifier="4">Witnesses Generally</unit></structure><text>
						<section><p>In an <span class="dictionary">action</span> by or against a <span class="dictionary">person</span> who, from any cause, is incapable of testifying, or by or against the committee, trustee, executor, administrator, heir, or other representative of the <span class="dictionary">person</span> so incapable of testifying, no <span class="dictionary">judgment</span> or <span class="dictionary">decree</span> shall be rendered in favor of an adverse or interested <span class="dictionary">party</span> founded on his uncorroborated <span class="dictionary">testimony</span>. In any such <span class="dictionary">action</span>, whether such adverse <span class="dictionary">party</span> testifies or not, all entries, memoranda, and declarations by the <span class="dictionary">party</span> so incapable of testifying made while he was capable, relevant to the matter in <span class="dictionary">issue</span>, may be received as <span class="dictionary">evidence</span> in all proceedings including without limitation those to which a <span class="dictionary">person</span> under a disability is a <span class="dictionary">party</span>. The phrase &#x201C;from any cause&#x201D; as used in this section shall not include situations in which the <span class="dictionary">party</span> who is incapable of testifying has rendered himself unable to testify by an intentional self-inflicted injury.
		For the purposes of this section, and in addition to corroboration by any other competent <span class="dictionary">evidence</span>, an entry authored by an adverse or interested <span class="dictionary">party</span> contained in a business record may be competent <span class="dictionary">evidence</span> for corroboration of the <span class="dictionary">testimony</span> of an adverse or interested <span class="dictionary">party</span>. If authentication of the business record is not admitted in a request for admission, such business record shall be authenticated by a <span class="dictionary">person</span> other than the author of the entry who is not an adverse or interested <span class="dictionary">party</span> whose conduct is at <span class="dictionary">issue</span> in the <span class="dictionary">allegations</span> of the complaint.</p></section></text><history>Code 1950, &#xA7; 8-286; 1977, c. 617; 1988, c. 426; 2013, cc. 61, 637.</history><metadata></metadata></law>
