§ 8.01-466.Clerk to issue fieri facias on judgment for money.

Section 8.01-466 sets the gears in motion after a court enters judgment for money. Once twenty-one days pass, the clerk of court has no discretion left: on request from the judgment creditor, an assignee, or an attorney, the clerk issues a writ of fieri facias — the standard order commanding a sheriff or other officer to collect the judgment out of the debtor’s property — and hands it to that officer along with a receipt requirement so the paperwork trail stays intact.

The twenty-one day pause gives a losing defendant a short window before collection efforts start, mirroring the time typically allowed to note an appeal or ask for reconsideration. The clerk must also attach the form for requesting a hearing on a claimed exemption from levy, so the debtor learns right away how to protect wages, tools, or household goods that state law shields from creditors.

Creditors are not always stuck waiting three weeks. When circumstances justify moving faster — a debtor dissipating assets, for example — the court may order execution to issue earlier. That flexibility keeps the default waiting period from becoming a loophole for a debtor racing to hide or transfer property before the writ can reach it.