§ 8.01-325.Return by person serving process.

Section 8.01-325 closes the loop on service by requiring the person who served process to document it promptly. Subsection A sets a seventy-two-hour deadline for returning proof of service to the clerk’s office, unless the court directs otherwise, extended to the next business day when the deadline would fall on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday. The process itself must state the date and manner of service and the name of the party served.

Subsection B tailors the proof requirement to who made the service. A sheriff uses the return form the Rules of the Supreme Court prescribe. Anyone else qualified under § 8.01-293, whether serving inside or outside Virginia, files an affidavit covering his qualifications, the date and manner of service, and the party served, with a stamped, typed, or printed annotation that the service was made by a private server, along with that server’s name, address, and telephone number. Service completed by publication is proven by the publisher’s or his agent’s affidavit stating the dates of publication, accompanied by a copy of the published order.

Subsection C gives clerks flexibility in accepting that proof: a photocopy, facsimile, or other copy of the original proof of service is accepted as if it were the original, as long as the person offering it states that the copy is true to the original.