                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

PERSONAL ACTIONS BASED ON CONTRACTS (§ 8.01-246)

A. Subject to the provisions of § 8.01-243 regarding injuries to person and
property and of § 8.01-245 regarding the application of limitations to
fiduciaries, and their bonds, actions founded upon a contract, other than
actions on a judgment or decree, shall be brought within the following number of
years next after the cause of action shall have accrued:

   1. In actions or upon a recognizance, except recognizance of bail in a civil
   suit, within 10 years; and in actions or motions upon a recognizance of bail
   in a civil suit, within three years, omitting from the computation of such
   three years such time as the right to sue out such execution shall have been
   suspended by injunction, supersedeas or other process;

   2. In actions on any contract that is not otherwise specified and that is in
   writing and signed by the party to be charged thereby, or by his agent, within
   five years whether such writing be under seal or not;

   3. In actions by a partner against another for settlement of the partnership
   account or in actions upon accounts concerning the trade of merchandise
   between merchant and merchant, their factors, or servants, within five years
   from the cessation of the dealings in which they are interested together;

   4. In actions upon (i) any contract that is not otherwise specified and that
   is in writing and not signed by the party to be charged, or by his agent, or
   (ii) any unwritten contract, express or implied, within three years.

B. In any action, including those brought by the Commonwealth, upon any contract
under subdivision A 2 or 4 to collect medical debt, such an action is barred if
not commenced within three years from the due date applicable to the final
invoice for a health care service unless the contract with a hospital or health
care provider is for a payment plan that allows for a longer period of time for
the collection of debt by the hospital or health care provider. In the event of
breach of a payment plan, an action is barred if not commenced within three
years from the date of breach by the debtor. For the purposes of this
subsection, &#8220;medical debt&#8221; means a debt arising directly from the
receipt of a health care service and originally owed directly to a health care
service provider. The provisions of this subsection shall not apply to medical
debt arising from services paid for under programs administered by the
Department of Medical Assistance Services.

C. In the case of any action to which &#xA7; 8.2-725 of the Uniform Commercial
Code is applicable, that section shall be controlling except that in products
liability actions for injury to person and for injury to property, other than
the property subject to contract, the limitation prescribed in &#xA7; 8.01-243
shall apply.

HISTORY: Code 1950, §§ 8-13, 8-17, 8-23; 1964, c. 219; 1966, c. 118; 1977, c.
617; 2019, c. 241; 2024, c. 800.