Virginia bills · 2026 Regular Session
Virginia HB 303
Divorce; adultery, filing, parties living separate and apart, report.
- Introduced
- In committee
- Passed House
- Passed Senate
- To Governor
- Became law
Sponsors
- Richard C. "Rip" Sullivan, Jr. (Democratic)
Summary
Official abstract published by the Virginia legislature· SUMMARY AS PASSED
Divorce; adultery; filing; parties living separate and apart; work group; report. Specifies that a divorce may be decreed on the grounds of adultery, provided that such adultery occurred prior to the final separation of the parties. The bill further allows for a divorce from bed and board to be decreed on the application of either party upon the parties living separate and apart; under current law, a divorce from bed and board may only be decreed for cruelty, reasonable apprehension of bodily hurt, willful desertion, or abandonment. The bill specifies that no waiting period is required for the filing for such a divorce, but the decree of such a divorce may only be decreed pursuant to certain requirements otherwise specified in the law. The bill further directs the Virginia Family Law Coalition, in conjunction with the Virginia State Bar Family Law Section, to convene a work group to consider whether to eliminate fault-based grounds for divorce in the Commonwealth and to submit a report of its findings and recommendations to the Governor and to the Chairs of the House and Senate Committees for Courts of Justice no later than December 1, 2026.
Text versions
Roll-call votes
State vote data last updated Oct 16, 2026, 4:04 AM.
| Date | Vote | Result | Your legislators |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 11, 2026 House | H VOTE: | pass | Set your home in Virginia to see |
| Mar 10, 2026 Senate | Passage R | pass | Set your home in Virginia to see |
| Mar 9, 2026 Senate | Constitutional reading dispensed (on 2nd reading) | pass | Set your home in Virginia to see |
| Mar 5, 2026 Senate | Reported from Courts of Justice with amendments | pass | Set your home in Virginia to see |
| Feb 10, 2026 House | H VOTE: | pass | Set your home in Virginia to see |
| Feb 4, 2026 House | Reported from Courts of Justice | pass | Set your home in Virginia to see |
| Jan 28, 2026 House | Subcommittee recommends reporting | pass | Set your home in Virginia to see |
Actions
- Apr 13, 2026
Approved by Governor-Chapter 918 (effective 7/1/2026) - Mar 31, 2026
Governor's Action Deadline 11:59 p.m., April 13, 2026 - Mar 31, 2026 · House
Enrolled Bill communicated to Governor on March 31, 2026 - Mar 31, 2026 · House
Signed by Speaker - Mar 30, 2026 · Senate
Signed by President - Mar 30, 2026 · House
Bill text as passed House and Senate (HB303ER) - Mar 30, 2026 · House
Enrolled - Mar 11, 2026 · House
Senate amendments agreed to by House (64-Y 34-N 0-A) - Mar 10, 2026 · Senate
Passed Senate with amendments (24-Y 16-N 0-A) - Mar 10, 2026 · Senate
Engrossed by Senate as amended - Mar 10, 2026 · Senate
Courts of Justice Amendments agreed to - Mar 10, 2026 · Senate
Read third time - Mar 9, 2026 · Senate
Passed by for the day Block Vote (Voice Vote) - Mar 9, 2026 · Senate
Constitutional reading dispensed Block Vote (on 2nd reading) (40-Y 0-N 0-A) - Mar 9, 2026 · Senate
Rules suspended - Mar 5, 2026 · Senate
Reported from Courts of Justice with amendments (12-Y 1-N 1-A) - Mar 5, 2026 · Senate
Senate committee offered - Feb 11, 2026 · Senate
Referred to Committee for Courts of Justice - Feb 11, 2026 · Senate
Constitutional reading dispensed (on 1st reading) - Feb 10, 2026 · House
Read third time and passed House (67-Y 31-N 0-A) - Feb 9, 2026 · House
Read second time and engrossed - Feb 6, 2026 · House
Read first time - Feb 4, 2026 · House
Reported from Courts of Justice (16-Y 6-N) - Jan 28, 2026 · House
Subcommittee recommends reporting (6-Y 2-N) - Jan 26, 2026 · House
Assigned HCJ sub: Civil - Jan 9, 2026 · House
Referred to Committee for Courts of Justice - Jan 9, 2026 · House
Prefiled and ordered printed; Offered 01-14-2026 26101259D