Virginia’s Primary Family Law Statutes

The guideline amount is presumed correct, but a court may deviate from it if it makes written findings that applying the guidelines would be unjust or inappropriate given case-specific factors — among them the parties' custody arrangement, imputed income for voluntary unemployment or underemployment, childcare and health-care costs, a child's special needs, and the tax consequences of support and dependency exemptions.

For spousal support, courts weigh a separate and more discretionary set of factors under § 20-107.1 — length of the marriage, each spouse's earning capacity and standard of living during the marriage, contributions to the family's well-being (including non-monetary contributions), and, where relevant, marital fault.

Because both the child support guidelines and the deviation factors are subject to periodic amendment by the General Assembly — most recently in 2025 — exact figures should always be confirmed against the current Code of Virginia or through consultation with counsel.

Va. Code §§ 20-108.1, 20-108.2 (Code of Virginia)

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Equitable distribution does not mean an automatic 50/50 split. The court weighs a range of statutory factors, including each spouse's monetary and non-monetary contributions to the marriage and to the acquisition of marital property, the duration of the marriage, the circumstances contributing to the dissolution (including any fault grounds), and each party's age, health, and earning capacity, among others. The statute also gives the court continuing authority to enforce its orders, including through the assignment of retirement benefits by qualified domestic relations order and, where appropriate, orders addressing jointly titled property.

This framework is particularly significant in high-asset matters involving closely held businesses, executive compensation, retirement accounts, and real estate portfolios, where classification and valuation questions often drive the outcome more than the statutory factors themselves.

Va. Code § 20-107.3 (Code of Virginia)

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No single factor is automatically decisive. The court considers the factors together in light of the specific family's circumstances, and in high-conflict custody cases, how each parent has actually behaved — including any pattern of interfering with the other parent's relationship with the child — often carries substantial weight.

The judge must communicate the basis of the decision to the parties, either orally or in writing, setting out findings on the relevant factors, except in the case of consent orders.

Va. Code § 20-124.3 (Code of Virginia)

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One provision deserves particular attention in high-conflict cases: a spouse generally cannot receive spousal support if the other spouse proves adultery, subject to a narrow exception where denying support would work a manifest injustice, based on clear and convincing evidence weighing the parties' relative fault and economic circumstances. This makes fault-based grounds strategically significant even where the divorce itself will ultimately proceed on a no-fault basis.

In contested circuit court cases, the court must issue written findings identifying the factors supporting its spousal support decision, and any award may later be subject to modification or reservation depending on how the original order was structured.

Va. Code § 20-107.1 (Code of Virginia)

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Choosing whether to pursue a fault-based ground is a strategic decision, not just a technical one. It can affect eligibility for spousal support and, in some cases, the equitable distribution of property. Pursuing a fault ground also raises proof issues of its own — fault must be established by clear and convincing evidence, and litigating it can add time, cost, and conflict to a case that might otherwise resolve on a no-fault basis.

The grounds for divorce are periodically revised by the General Assembly, most recently in 2026. Case-specific guidance should always be confirmed against the current Code of Virginia or through consultation with counsel.

Va. Code § 20-91 (Code of Virginia)

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