                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

LIEN FOR FEES (§ 54.1-3932)

A. Any person having or claiming a cause of action (i) sounding in tort, (ii)
for liquidated or unliquidated damages on contract, or (iii) for annulment or
divorce may contract with any attorney to prosecute the same, and, upon
contracting such attorney, the attorney shall have a lien upon the cause of
action as security for his fees for any services rendered in relation to the
cause of action or claim. When any such contract is made, and written notice of
the claim of such lien is given to the client or former client, the opposite
party or such party&#8217;s attorney or agent, and the clerk of court in which a
case may be pending, any settlement or adjustment of the cause of action is void
against the lien so created, except as proof of liability on such cause of
action. Written notice of the lien shall be given either within 45 days of the
end of representation or (a) in causes of action sounding in tort or for
liquidated or unliquidated damages on contract, before settlement or adjustment,
whichever is earlier or (b) in cases of annulment or divorce, before final
judgment is entered, whichever is earlier. Nothing in this section affects the
existing law in respect to champertous contracts. In causes of action for
annulment or divorce, the court may not determine the validity or amount of the
lien until the divorce judgment is final and all residual disputes regarding
marital property are concluded. Nothing in this section affects the existing law
in respect to exemptions from creditor process under federal or state law.

B. Notwithstanding the provisions in subsection A, a court in a case of
annulment or divorce may, in its discretion, exclude spousal support and child
support from the scope of the attorney&#8217;s lien.

C. The validity and amount of the lien may be determined either by motion in the
case in which the lien is claimed, or by separate action after final judgment
has been entered therein or if no case has been filed. The validity and amount
of the lien shall be determined by the court without a jury.

HISTORY: Code 1950, § 54-70; 1988, c. 765; 2001, c. 495; 2023, c. 234.