                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA

LIABILITY OF EMPLOYER FOR PERSONAL INJURY OR DEATH BY WRONGFUL ACT (§
8.01-42.6)

A. In addition to any other available grounds for the determination of the
course and scope of employment, in an action for personal injury or death by
wrongful act brought by a vulnerable victim or the personal representative of a
deceased vulnerable victim against an employee, the finder of fact at trial on
the merits shall determine whether an employer shall be vicariously liable for
the tortious conduct of such employer&#8217;s employee based upon a finding
that:

   1. The employee&#8217;s tortious conduct occurred while the employee was
   reasonably likely to be in contact with the vulnerable victim and such conduct
   proximately causes personal injury to such vulnerable victim or the death of
   such vulnerable victim by wrongful act;

   2. The employer failed to exercise reasonable care to (i) prevent the employee
   from intentionally harming such vulnerable victim or (ii) control the employee
   resulting in an unreasonable risk of a vulnerable victim suffering personal
   injury or death by wrongful act;

   3. The employer knew or should have known of the ability to control the
   employee; and

   4. The employer knew or should have known of the necessity and opportunity for
   exercising such control over the employee.

B. For the purposes of this section, &#8220;vulnerable victim&#8221; means any
person who is at a substantial disadvantage relative to an employee due to
circumstances, including such person&#8217;s physical or mental condition or
characteristics, and, as a matter of law, shall include a (i) patient of a
health care provider, as defined in &#xA7; 8.01-581.1; (ii) person under a
disability pursuant to &#xA7; 8.01-2; (iii) resident of an assisted living
facility; (iv) passenger of a common carrier, as defined in &#xA7; 46.2-2000,
excluding those transit services and transit facilities under the Washington
Metropolitan Area Transit Authority Compact of 1966 pursuant to Chapter 31
(&#xA7; 33.2-3100) of Title 33.2; (v) passenger of a common carrier, as defined
in &#xA7; 46.2-2000, excluding public transit agencies funded in whole or in
part by the Commonwealth Mass Transit Fund, as defined in &#xA7; 33.2-1526; (vi)
passenger of a nonemergency medical transportation carrier, as defined in &#xA7;
46.2-2000; and (vii) business invitee of an esthetics spa, as defined in &#xA7;
54.1-700, or a business offering massage therapy, as defined in &#xA7;
54.1-3000.

C. The determination of the issues pursuant to the provisions of this section
shall be questions of fact for which the plaintiff shall bear the burden of
proof and shall be subject to any available affirmative defenses.

HISTORY: 2025, cc. 726, 727.