Virginia Code 59.1-202: Assurances of voluntary compliance
A. The Attorney General, the attorney for the Commonwealth, or the attorney for a county, city, or town may accept an assurance of voluntary compliance with this chapter from any person subject to the provisions of this chapter. Any such assurance shall be in writing and be filed with and be subject on petition to the approval of the appropriate circuit court. Such assurance of voluntary compliance shall not be considered an admission of guilt or a violation for any purpose. Such assurance of voluntary compliance may at any time be reopened by the Attorney General, or the attorney for the Commonwealth, or attorney for the county, city, or town respectively, for additional orders or decrees to enforce the assurance of voluntary compliance.
Terms Used In Virginia Code 59.1-202
- City: means an independent incorporated community which became a city as provided by law before noon on July 1, 1971, or which has within defined boundaries a population of 5,000 or more and which has become a city as provided by law. See Virginia Code 1-208
- Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
- in writing: include any representation of words, letters, symbols, numbers, or figures, whether (i) printed or inscribed on a tangible medium or (ii) stored in an electronic or other medium and retrievable in a perceivable form and whether an electronic signature authorized by Chapter 42. See Virginia Code 1-257
- Person: means any natural person, corporation, trust, partnership, association and any other legal entity. See Virginia Code 59.1-198
- Restitution: The court-ordered payment of money by the defendant to the victim for damages caused by the criminal action.
- Supplier: means a seller, lessor, licensor, or professional who advertises, solicits, or engages in consumer transactions, or a manufacturer, distributor, or licensor who advertises and sells, leases, or licenses goods or services to be resold, leased, or sublicensed by other persons in consumer transactions. See Virginia Code 59.1-198
- Town: means any existing town or an incorporated community within one or more counties which became a town before noon, July 1, 1971, as provided by law or which has within defined boundaries a population of 1,000 or more and which has become a town as provided by law. See Virginia Code 1-254
B. When an assurance is presented to the circuit court for approval, the Attorney General, the attorney for the Commonwealth, or the attorney for the appropriate county, city, or town shall file, in the form of a motion for judgment or complaint, the allegations which form the basis for the entry of the assurance. The assurance may provide by its terms for any relief which an appropriate circuit court could grant, including but not limited to restitution, arbitration of disputes between the supplier and its customers, investigative expenses, civil penalties and costs; provided, however, that nothing in this chapter shall be construed to authorize or require the Commonwealth, the Attorney General, an attorney for the Commonwealth or the attorney for any county, city or town to participate in arbitration of violations under this section.
1977, c. 635; 1981, c. 423; 1982, c. 13; 1988, c. 850.