                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

CLAIMANT MAY GIVE SUSPENDING BOND; PROCEEDINGS TO HAVE TITLE SETTLED; ACTION ON
INDEMNIFYING OR SUSPENDING BOND (§ 8.01-370)

The sale of any property levied on under a fieri facias or distress warrant
shall be suspended at the instance of any claimant thereof who will deliver to
the officer a suspending bond, with good security, in a penalty equal to double
the value thereof, payable to such officer, with condition to pay to all persons
who may be injured by suspending the sale thereof, until the claim thereto is
adjudicated or otherwise adjusted, such damage as they may sustain by such
suspension. If the property claimed to be liable by virtue of such process is in
the possession of any of the parties against whom such process was issued, but
is claimed by any other person, or is claimed to belong to any other person, the
officer having such process in his hands to be executed shall, whether an
indemnifying bond has been given or not, after notice to the claimant, or his
agent, proceed to execute the same notwithstanding such claim, unless the
claimant of such property or someone for him shall give the suspending bond
aforesaid, and shall within thirty days after such bond is given proceed to have
the title to such property settled in accordance with the provisions of this
chapter. And in case such claimant or someone for him fails to give a suspending
bond, or having given such bond fails to have such proceedings instituted to
settle the title thereto, the claimant shall be barred from asserting such claim
to the property and the sale of the property shall proceed. For the purpose of
this section, a person making a claim of ownership of property on behalf of
another shall be deemed to be the latter&#8217;s agent, and the notice required
by this section may be verbal or in writing. Upon any such indemnifying or
suspending bond as is mentioned in this section or § 8.01-369 an action may be
prosecuted in the name of the officer for the benefit of the claimant, creditor,
purchaser, or other person injured, and such damages recovered in such action as
a jury may assess. The action may be prosecuted and a writ of fieri facias had
in the name of such officer when he is dead in like manner as if he were alive.

HISTORY: Code 1950, § 8-232; 1977, c. 617.