Upon granting an order confirming, modifying or correcting an award, a judgment or decree shall be entered in conformity therewith and be docketed and enforced as any other judgment or decree. Costs of the application and of the proceedings subsequent thereto, and disbursements may be awarded by the court.
§ 8.01-581.012.Judgment or decree on award.
Chapter 21. Arbitration and Award · Article 2. Uniform Arbitration Act · Last amended 1986 · Last verified July 16, 2026
In one sentenceOnce a Virginia court confirms, modifies, or corrects an arbitration award, it enters a matching judgment or decree that gets docketed and enforced exactly like any other court judgment, and the court may also award the costs of the application and the proceedings that followed it.
Full Text of § 8.01-581.012
Plain-English Summary
An arbitration award, by itself, is a private decision — it needs a court’s stamp to become enforceable the way a judgment is. This section supplies that final step. After the court grants an order confirming, modifying, or correcting an award, it enters a judgment or decree that matches the court’s ruling.
From that point on, there is nothing special about the judgment. It gets docketed the same way any other judgment does, and it can be enforced through the same collection tools a prevailing party would use after winning a case at trial — the fact that the underlying decision came from arbitrators rather than a judge or jury drops out of the picture.
The court can also award costs tied to the application and whatever proceedings followed it, along with disbursements, giving the prevailing party a way to recoup at least some of what it spent turning the award into an enforceable judgment.
Frequently Asked Questions
What happens after a court confirms, modifies, or corrects an arbitration award?
A judgment or decree is entered in conformity with the court’s order.
Is a judgment entered on an arbitration award enforced differently than other judgments?
No, it is docketed and enforced as any other judgment or decree.
Can the court award costs related to confirming an arbitration award?
Yes, costs of the application and of the proceedings subsequent to it, along with disbursements, may be awarded by the court.
Does this section apply only to confirmed awards, or also to modified ones?
It applies to any order confirming, modifying, or correcting an award — the resulting judgment or decree reflects whichever of those the court granted.
Can the resulting judgment be collected the same way as any other Virginia judgment?
Yes, once entered it is docketed and enforced like any other judgment or decree.
Amendment History
1986, c. 614.
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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