Any assignee or beneficial owner may recover from any assignor of a writing; but only joint assignors shall be joined as defendants in one action. A remote assignor shall have the benefit of the same defense as if the suit had been instituted by his immediate assignee.
§ 8.01-14.Suit against assignor.
Chapter 2. Parties · Article 2. Special Provisions · Last amended 1977 · Last verified July 16, 2026
In one sentenceSection 8.01-14 lets an assignee or beneficial owner recover from any assignor of a writing, but allows only joint assignors to be joined together as defendants in one action, and gives a remote assignor the same defenses available as if the suit had been brought by that assignor’s own immediate assignee.
Full Text of § 8.01-14
Plain-English Summary
Section 8.01-14 addresses the other side of an assignment relationship — recovery against the person who made the assignment, rather than recovery on the underlying obligation itself. Any assignee or beneficial owner may recover from any assignor of a writing. Joinder in a single action, however, is limited to joint assignors; assignors who are not joint cannot be lumped together as defendants in one suit.
The section also protects a remote assignor — someone further back in the chain of transfers — by giving that assignor the same defense available as if the suit had been instituted by their own immediate assignee, rather than by whoever now holds the writing. A remote assignor’s exposure does not expand just because the writing has changed hands several more times since.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can an assignee sue the person who assigned the writing to them if something goes wrong?
Yes. Section 8.01-14 allows an assignee or beneficial owner to recover from any assignor of a writing.
Can multiple assignors be sued together in one action?
Only if they are joint assignors. Section 8.01-14 limits joinder as defendants in a single action to assignors who are joint.
What protection does a remote assignor have under this section?
Section 8.01-14 gives a remote assignor the benefit of the same defense that would apply had the suit been brought by that assignor’s own immediate assignee.
Does this section apply to any type of assigned writing?
Section 8.01-14 refers broadly to “any assignor of a writing,” without limiting itself to a particular kind of instrument.
Why does a remote assignor’s original defense still matter after several more assignments?
Section 8.01-14 preserves the chain of defenses so that a later assignee does not acquire greater rights against a remote assignor than the assignor’s own immediate assignee would have had.
Amendment History
Code 1950, § 8-95; 1977, c. 617.
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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