                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

COMMONWEALTH, TRANSPORTATION DISTRICT OR LOCALITY LIABLE FOR DAMAGES IN CERTAIN
CASES (§ 8.01-195.3)

Subject to the provisions of this article, the Commonwealth shall be liable for
claims for money only accruing on or after July 1, 1982, and any transportation
district shall be liable for claims for money only accruing on or after July 1,
1986, on account of damage to or loss of property or personal injury or death
caused by the negligent or wrongful act or omission of any employee while acting
within the scope of his employment under circumstances where the Commonwealth or
transportation district, if a private person, would be liable to the claimant
for such damage, loss, injury or death. However, except to the extent that a
transportation district contracts to do so pursuant to § 33.2-1919, neither the
Commonwealth nor any transportation district shall be liable for interest prior
to judgment or for punitive damages. The amount recoverable by any claimant
shall not exceed (i) $25,000 for causes of action accruing prior to July 1,
1988, $75,000 for causes of action accruing on or after July 1, 1988, or
$100,000 for causes of action accruing on or after July 1, 1993, or (ii) the
maximum limits of any liability policy maintained to insure against such
negligence or other tort, if such policy is in force at the time of the act or
omission complained of, whichever is greater, exclusive of interest and costs.
		Notwithstanding any provision hereof, the individual immunity of judges, the
Attorney General, attorneys for the Commonwealth, and other public officers,
their agents and employees from tort claims for damages is hereby preserved to
the extent and degree that such persons presently are immunized. Any recovery
based on the following claims are hereby excluded from the provisions of this
article:

1. Any claim against the Commonwealth based upon an act or omission which
occurred prior to July 1, 1982.
			1a. Any claim against a transportation district based upon an act or omission
which occurred prior to July 1, 1986.

2. Any claim based upon an act or omission of the General Assembly or district
commission of any transportation district, or any member or staff thereof acting
in his official capacity, or to the legislative function of any agency subject
to the provisions of this article.

3. Any claim based upon an act or omission of any court of the Commonwealth, or
any member thereof acting in his official capacity, or to the judicial functions
of any agency subject to the provisions of this article.

4. Any claim based upon an act or omission of an officer, agent or employee of
any agency of government in the execution of a lawful order of any court.

5. Any claim arising in connection with the assessment or collection of taxes.

6. Any claim arising out of the institution or prosecution of any judicial or
administrative proceeding, even if without probable cause.

7. Any claim by an inmate of a state correctional facility, as defined in &#xA7;
53.1-1, unless the claimant verifies under oath, by affidavit, that he has
exhausted his remedies under the adult institutional inmate grievance procedures
promulgated by the Department of Corrections. The time for filing the notice of
tort claim shall be tolled during the pendency of the grievance procedure.
			Nothing contained herein shall operate to reduce or limit the extent to which
the Commonwealth or any transportation district, agency or employee was deemed
liable for negligence as of July 1, 1982, nor shall any provision of this
article be applicable to any county, city or town in the Commonwealth or be so
construed as to remove or in any way diminish the sovereign immunity of any
county, city or town in the Commonwealth.

HISTORY: 1981, c. 449; 1982, c. 397; 1986, c. 584; 1988, c. 884; 1989, c. 446;
1993, c. 481; 1998, cc. 203, 820; 2007, c. 250.