Virginia Class Action Bill Vetoed By Governor

On May 29, 2026, Governor Abigail Spanberger vetoed Virginia’s closely watched class action legislation, preserving Virginia’s status as one of only two states in the country (the other one being Mississippi) without a general state-court class action procedure. The veto halts what would have been a major shift in Virginia civil litigation and consumer protection law.

As discussed in our prior blog, Senate Bill 229 and House Bill 449 would have created a comprehensive framework for class action litigation in Virginia state courts modeled in significant part on Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23. The legislation also would have expanded the availability of classwide relief under the Virginia Consumer Protection Act and likely would have made Virginia state courts a substantially more attractive forum for consumer, privacy, and other aggregate litigation. Business groups and tort reform organizations strongly opposed the legislation, warning that it would increase litigation costs,