                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

RETURN BY PERSON SERVING PROCESS (§ 8.01-325)

A. Unless otherwise directed by the court, the person serving process shall make
return thereof to the clerk&#8217;s office within seventy-two hours of service,
except when such return would be due on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday. In
such case, the return is due on the next day following such Saturday, Sunday, or
legal holiday. The process shall state thereon the date and manner of service
and the name of the party served.

B. Proof of service shall be in the following manner:

   1. If service by sheriff, the form of the return of such sheriff as provided
   by the Rules of the Supreme Court; or

   2. If service by any other person qualified under &#xA7; 8.01-293, whether
   service made in or out of the Commonwealth, his affidavit of such
   qualifications; the date and manner of service and the name of the party
   served; and stamped, typed, or printed on the return of process, an annotation
   that the service was by a private server, and the name, address, and telephone
   number of the server; or

   3. In case of service by publication, the affidavit of the publisher or his
   agent giving the dates of publication and an accompanying copy of the
   published order.

C. The clerk&#8217;s office shall accept a photocopy, facsimile, or other copy
of the original proof of service as if it were an original, provided that the
proponent provides a statement that any such copy is a true copy of the
original.

HISTORY: Code 1950, §§ 8-52, 8-329; 1977, c. 617; 1996, c. 538; 2020, c. 158.