§ 8.01-216.12.Civil investigative demands; protected material or information.
Chapter 3. Actions · Article 19.1. Virginia Fraud Against Taxpayers Act · Last amended 2002 · Last verified July 16, 2026
In one sentenceSection 8.01-216.12 shields material, answers, and testimony from a civil investigative demand to the extent they would be protected under grand jury subpoena standards or the discovery standards under the Rules of the Supreme Court of Virginia, and lets an express demand for a product of discovery override inconsistent orders without waiving trial-preparation privileges.
Full Text of § 8.01-216.12
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A civil investigative demand issued under this article shall not require the production of any documentary material, the submission of any answers to written interrogatories, or the giving of any oral testimony if such material, answers, or testimony would be protected from disclosure under (i) the standards applicable to subpoenas or subpoenas duces tecum issued by a court of this Commonwealth to aid in a grand jury investigation or (ii) the standards applicable to discovery requests under the Rules of the Supreme Court of Virginia, to the extent that the application of such standards to any such demand is appropriate and consistent with the provisions and purposes of this article.
Any such demand that is an express demand for any product of discovery supersedes any inconsistent order, rule, or provision of law, other than this section, preventing or restraining disclosure of such product of discovery to any person. Disclosure of any product of discovery pursuant to any such express demand does not constitute a waiver of any right or privilege that the person making such disclosure may be entitled to invoke to resist discovery of trial preparation materials.
Plain-English Summary
Section 8.01-216.12 places limits on what a civil investigative demand can reach. A demand cannot require production of documentary material, answers to interrogatories, or oral testimony that would be protected from disclosure under the standards that apply to subpoenas or subpoenas duces tecum issued to aid a grand jury investigation, or under the discovery standards in the Rules of the Supreme Court of Virginia, to the extent those standards fit the demand.
A separate rule addresses demands for a product of discovery — material originally produced in another proceeding. An express demand for such material overrides any inconsistent order, rule, or other provision of law, apart from this section itself, that would otherwise block its disclosure. Disclosing a product of discovery in response to an express demand does not waive any right or privilege the person making the disclosure could otherwise invoke to resist discovery of trial-preparation materials.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are there limits on what a civil investigative demand can compel?
Yes. It cannot reach material, answers, or testimony that would be protected under the standards applicable to grand jury subpoenas or under the discovery standards in the Rules of the Supreme Court of Virginia, as those standards apply to the demand.
Can a civil investigative demand override a protective order from another case?
An express demand for a product of discovery supersedes any inconsistent order, rule, or provision of law other than this section, so it can reach material a protective order in another proceeding would otherwise keep sealed.
Does producing material under an express demand waive the right to withhold it later as trial-preparation material?
No. Disclosure under an express demand for a product of discovery does not waive any privilege the disclosing person could otherwise invoke to resist discovery of trial-preparation materials.
What is an “express demand” for a product of discovery?
It refers to a civil investigative demand that specifically targets material a person originally obtained through discovery in another judicial or administrative proceeding, which is why §§ 8.01-216.10 and 8.01-216.11 require extra notice to the original source of that material.
Do grand jury subpoena protections apply automatically to every civil investigative demand?
They apply to the extent those standards are appropriate and consistent with the article’s purposes, not as a blanket rule imported wholesale from grand jury practice.
Amendment History
2002, c. 842.
Source & verification. Section text and amendment history are
reproduced verbatim from the Code of Virginia, published by the
Code of Virginia, Virginia Division of Legislative Automated Systems. Last verified July 16, 2026.
· Official source
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