A. Whenever, in any civil action it becomes necessary to ascertain what the law, statutory or otherwise, of this Commonwealth, of another state, of the United States, of another country, or of any political subdivision or agency of the same is, or was, at any time, the court shall take judicial notice thereof whether specially pleaded or not.

Terms Used In Virginia Code 8.01-386

  • agency: shall be deemed to include without limitation any department, division, commission, association, board, or other administrative body established pursuant to the laws of a jurisdiction. See Virginia Code 8.01-385
  • court: shall be deemed to include the courts of this Commonwealth, any other person or body appointed by it or acting under its process or authority in a judicial or quasi-judicial capacity, and any other judicial, quasi-judicial, or fact-finding body acting pursuant to the laws of the Commonwealth, including without limitation, the State Corporation Commission and the Virginia Workers' Compensation Commission. See Virginia Code 8.01-385
  • Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
  • State: when applied to a part of the United States, includes any of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the United States Virgin Islands. See Virginia Code 1-245
  • United States: shall be deemed to refer to the United States of America and to include any of its territories, commonwealths, insular possessions, the District of Columbia, and any of its other political subdivisions other than states. See Virginia Code 8.01-385

B. The court, in taking such notice, may consult any book, record, register, journal, or other official document or publication purporting to contain, state, or explain such law, and may consider any evidence or other information or argument that is offered on the subject.

Code 1950, §§ 8-264, 8-270, 8-273; 1960, c. 504; 1977, c. 617.

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