A. Except as otherwise provided by § 8.3A-308, when any pleading alleges that any person made, endorsed, assigned, or accepted any writing, no proof of the handwriting shall be required, unless it be denied by an affidavit accompanying the plea putting it in issue.
§ 8.01-279.When proof is unnecessary unless affidavit filed; handwriting; ownership; partnership or incorporation.
Chapter 7. Civil Actions; Commencement, Pleadings, and Motions · Article 2. Pleadings Generally · Last amended 1977 · Last verified July 16, 2026
In one sentenceSection 8.01-279 shifts the burden of proof onto the party denying certain routine facts — handwriting on a writing, ownership or control of property, or partnership or corporate status — by requiring a supporting affidavit before the pleader must prove the fact at trial.
Full Text of § 8.01-279
B. When any pleading alleges that any person, partnership, corporation, or unincorporated association at a stated time, owned, operated, or controlled any property or instrumentality, no proof of the fact alleged shall be required unless an affidavit be filed with the pleading putting it in issue, denying specifically and with particularity that such property or instrumentality was, at the time alleged, so owned, operated, or controlled.
C. When parties sue or are sued as partners, and their names are set forth in the pleading, or when parties sue or are sued as a corporation, it shall not be necessary to prove the fact of the partnership or incorporation unless with the pleading which puts the matter in issue there be filed an affidavit denying such partnership or incorporation.
Plain-English Summary
Section 8.01-279 saves litigants from proving facts nobody disputes in good faith. It works through a shift-the-burden mechanism repeated across its three subsections: allege the fact in a pleading, and it is deemed established unless the other side files an affidavit specifically denying it.
Subsection A covers handwriting: if a pleading alleges that someone made, endorsed, assigned, or accepted a writing, no proof of the handwriting is required unless an affidavit accompanying the plea puts it in issue, subject to the separate rule in § 8.3A-308 for negotiable instruments. Subsection B covers ownership, operation, or control of property or an instrumentality at a stated time; that fact needs no proof unless an affidavit filed with the pleading specifically and particularly denies it. Subsection C covers partnership and incorporation: when parties sue or are sued as named partners, or as a corporation, no proof of the partnership or the incorporation is needed unless an affidavit denying it is filed with the pleading that puts the matter in issue.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does a party have to prove someone’s handwriting on a document unless the other side denies it?
No. Under § 8.01-279(A), no proof of handwriting is required unless it is denied by an affidavit accompanying the plea that puts it in issue.
What must a defendant do to dispute a plaintiff’s allegation of property ownership or control?
File an affidavit with the pleading, denying specifically and with particularity that the property or instrumentality was owned, operated, or controlled as alleged.
Does a plaintiff suing a named partnership have to prove the partnership exists?
Not unless the defendant files, with the pleading putting the matter in issue, an affidavit denying the partnership.
Does this section apply to negotiable instruments?
Subsection A applies except as otherwise provided by § 8.3A-308, which separately addresses handwriting proof for negotiable instruments.
What is the effect of failing to file a denying affidavit under this section?
The alleged fact, handwriting, ownership or control, or partnership or incorporation, need not be proved at trial.
Amendment History
Code 1950, §§ 8-114 to 8-116; 1954, c. 333; 1958, c. 66; 1964, c. 219; 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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