Legal Question in Credit and Debt Law in Virginia

Re: Statute of limitations

IF the contract was entered into in Virginia, then Virginia's statute of limitations will govern. In most cases, if you are now living in Virginia, Virginia's statute of limitations will end up governing anyway, because there is usually a rule that the LESSER statute of limitations applies between the original state and the state where you live.

The statute of limitations does not depend on whether it is credit card debt (although it is good to ask, because there are exceptions; for example defamation is 1 year, so it can be tricky and it is a very important question to ask).

The statute of limitations on any WRITTEN contract is 5 years. This is measured from the date when something was supposed to be done. So beware, it is not measured from the date when you signed it, but from the date when it was BREACHED (when anything that should have been done was not done). A written contract can be very simple. For example, on the intake form for hospitals and doctor's offices there is usually a little paragraph saying "I promise to pay, blah, blah, blah." This is enough to make it a written contract.

The statute of limitations on a VERBAL contract is 3 years. However, that is measured from the last date on which services or products were provided OR from the last payment date, whichever is latest.

Also, any written promise that you are going to pay can RESTART the clock on the statute of limitations. So if you offer to make a settlement make sure that it is CONDITIONAL. It should say "IF we agreed to make a deal I WOULD agree to pay $X" (but you have not agreed yet).

HOWEVER, in Virginia, the creditor can bring a lawsuit regardless of the statute of limitations. If the debt is 30 years old, they can still file a lawsuit. It is up to you to file a defense claiming that the money is NOT collectible because of the statute of limitations. Until you OBJECT as a defense, the statute of limitations does not exist. So until the statute of limitations is claimed, it does not exist. The moment it is claimed, then the lawsuit is dead (if the statute of limitations applies).

This is especially dangerous if you lose by default. It hurts you in Virginia if the creditor does not know your current address. (Not so in other States, but in Virginia, yes.) So it is better to make sure they have your current address. That way you will always be notified of court dates and you can be sure to always show up and OBJECT.

However, there is no statute of limitations for people BUGGING you. There is no way to stop people from asking for payment. But once they go into court, the claim may be dead.