{"formats":[{"name":"JSON","format":"json","url":"\/downloads\/2026\/code-json\/63.2-1501.json"},{"name":"Plain Text","format":"text","url":"\/downloads\/2026\/code-text\/63.2-1501.txt"},{"name":"XML","format":"xml","url":"\/downloads\/2026\/code-xml\/63.2-1501.xml"},{"name":"HTML","format":"html","url":"\/downloads\/2026\/code-html\/63.2-1501.html"}],"law_id":375365,"edition_id":2,"section_id":375365,"structure_id":53369,"section_number":"63.2-1501","catch_line":"Definitions","history":"1975, c. 341, \u00a7 63.1-248.2; 1981, c. 123; 1986, c. 308; 1990, c. 760; 1995, c. 520; 2000, c. 500; 2002, c. 747.","full_text":"As used in this chapter unless the context requires a different meaning:\n\n&#8220;Court&#8221; means the juvenile and domestic relations district court of the county or city.\n\n&#8220;Prevention&#8221; means efforts that (i) promote health and competence in people and (ii) create, promote and strengthen environments that nurture people in their development.\n\n","order_by":null,"text":{"0":{"id":1401237,"text":"As used in this chapter unless the context requires a different meaning:","type":"section","prefixes":[""],"prefix":"","entire_prefix":"","prefix_anchor":"","level":1,"next_prefix":""},"1":{"id":1401238,"text":"&#8220;Court&#8221; means the juvenile and domestic relations district court of the county or city.","type":"section","prefixes":[""],"prefix":"","entire_prefix":"","prefix_anchor":"","level":1,"prior_prefix":"","next_prefix":""},"2":{"id":1401239,"text":"&#8220;Prevention&#8221; means efforts that (i) promote health and competence in people and (ii) create, promote and strengthen environments that nurture people in their development.","type":"section","prefixes":[""],"prefix":"","entire_prefix":"","prefix_anchor":"","level":1,"prior_prefix":""}},"ancestry":[{"id":53369,"edition_id":2,"name":"General Provisions","identifier":"1","label":"article","depth":4,"order_by":1,"parent_id":53368,"metadata":{"child_laws":9,"child_structures":0},"date_created":"2026-08-02 03:15:38","date_modified":"2026-08-02 12:36:59","permalink":{"id":1498713,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":53369,"identifier":"1","token":"63.2\/III\/15\/1","url":"\/63.2\/III\/15\/1\/","edition_id":2,"permalink":0,"preferred":1}},{"id":53368,"edition_id":2,"name":"Child Abuse and Neglect","identifier":"15","label":"chapter","depth":3,"order_by":6,"parent_id":53353,"metadata":{"child_laws":40,"child_structures":7},"date_created":"2026-08-02 03:15:38","date_modified":"2026-08-02 12:36:59","permalink":{"id":1498711,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":53368,"identifier":"15","token":"63.2\/III\/15","url":"\/63.2\/III\/15\/","edition_id":2,"permalink":0,"preferred":1}},{"id":53353,"edition_id":2,"name":"Social Services Programs","identifier":"III","label":"subtitle","depth":2,"order_by":3,"parent_id":53350,"metadata":{"child_laws":188,"child_structures":29},"date_created":"2026-08-02 03:15:26","date_modified":"2026-08-02 12:36:57","permalink":{"id":1498333,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":53353,"identifier":"III","token":"63.2\/III","url":"\/63.2\/III\/","edition_id":2,"permalink":0,"preferred":1}},{"id":53350,"edition_id":2,"name":"Welfare (Social Services)","identifier":"63.2","label":"title","depth":1,"order_by":135,"parent_id":null,"metadata":{"child_laws":493,"child_structures":73},"date_created":"2026-08-02 03:15:26","date_modified":"2026-08-02 12:36:55","permalink":{"id":1497663,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":53350,"identifier":"63.2","token":"63.2","url":"\/63.2\/","edition_id":2,"permalink":0,"preferred":1}}],"structure_contents":[{"id":375364,"structure_id":53369,"section_number":"63.2-1500","catch_line":"Repealed","url":"\/63.2-1500\/","token":"63.2\/III\/15\/1\/63.2-1500","metadata":false},{"id":375365,"structure_id":53369,"section_number":"63.2-1501","catch_line":"Definitions","url":"\/63.2-1501\/","token":"63.2\/III\/15\/1\/63.2-1501","metadata":false},{"id":375366,"structure_id":53369,"section_number":"63.2-1502","catch_line":"Establishment of Child-Protective Services Unit; duties","url":"\/63.2-1502\/","token":"63.2\/III\/15\/1\/63.2-1502","metadata":false},{"id":375367,"structure_id":53369,"section_number":"63.2-1503","catch_line":"Local departments to establish child-protective services; duties","url":"\/63.2-1503\/","token":"63.2\/III\/15\/1\/63.2-1503","metadata":{"court_decisions":{"0":{"name":"Norfolk Department of Human Services v. Joshua Goldberg","case_number":"1382231","citation":null,"date":"2024-08-20","url":"https:\/\/www.courtlistener.com\/opinion\/10046085\/norfolk-department-of-human-services-v-joshua-goldberg\/","abstract":" .\u202f.\u202f. COURT OF APPEALS OF VIRGINIA .\u202f.\u202f. ","court_html":"<abbr title=\"Court of Appeals\">COA<\/abbr>"},"1":{"name":" .\u202f.\u202f. Rebecca Benedict-Miller v. Virginia Department of Social .\u202f.\u202f. ","case_number":"0323211","citation":null,"date":"2021-11-23","url":"https:\/\/www.courtlistener.com\/opinion\/5300129\/rebecca-benedict-miller-v-virginia-department-of-social-services\/","abstract":" .\u202f.\u202f. COURT OF APPEALS OF VIRGINIA .\u202f.\u202f. ","court_html":"<abbr title=\"Court of Appeals\">COA<\/abbr>"},"2":{"name":"Christian v. Virginia Department of Social Services","case_number":"0918042","citation":"610 S.E.2d 870","date":"2005-03-29","url":"https:\/\/www.courtlistener.com\/opinion\/1063558\/christian-v-virginia-department-of-social-services\/","abstract":" .\u202f.\u202f. 610 S.E.2d 870 (2005) .\u202f.\u202f. ","court_html":"<abbr title=\"Court of Appeals\">COA<\/abbr>"},"3":{"name":"Haas v. Trammell (In Re Trammell)","case_number":"19-10666","citation":"388 B.R. 182","date":"2008-05-02","url":"https:\/\/www.courtlistener.com\/opinion\/1544760\/haas-v-trammell-in-re-trammell\/","abstract":" .\u202f.\u202f. 388 B.R. 182 (2008) .\u202f.\u202f. ","court_html":"United States Bankruptcy Court, E.D. Virginia"}}}},{"id":375368,"structure_id":53369,"section_number":"63.2-1504","catch_line":"Child-protective services differential response system","url":"\/63.2-1504\/","token":"63.2\/III\/15\/1\/63.2-1504","metadata":false},{"id":375369,"structure_id":53369,"section_number":"63.2-1505","catch_line":"Investigations by local departments","url":"\/63.2-1505\/","token":"63.2\/III\/15\/1\/63.2-1505","metadata":{"court_decisions":{"0":{"name":" .\u202f.\u202f. Anthony Moore v. Martin D. Brown, Commissioner, Virginia .\u202f.\u202f. ","case_number":"1396131","citation":"63 Va. App. 375","date":"2014-05-20","url":"https:\/\/www.courtlistener.com\/opinion\/2675016\/anthony-moore-v-martin-d-brown-commissioner-virginia-department-of\/","abstract":" .\u202f.\u202f. *377 .\u202f.\u202f. ","court_html":"<abbr title=\"Court of Appeals\">COA<\/abbr>"},"1":{"name":"Wells v. Shenandoah Valley Department of Social Services","case_number":"2200093","citation":"692 S.E.2d 286","date":"2010-05-04","url":"https:\/\/www.courtlistener.com\/opinion\/1062205\/wells-v-shenandoah-valley-department-of-social-services\/","abstract":" .\u202f.\u202f. 692 S.E.2d 286 (2010) .\u202f.\u202f. ","court_html":"<abbr title=\"Court of Appeals\">COA<\/abbr>"},"2":{"name":"Norfolk Department of Human Services v. Joshua Goldberg","case_number":"1382231","citation":null,"date":"2024-08-20","url":"https:\/\/www.courtlistener.com\/opinion\/10046085\/norfolk-department-of-human-services-v-joshua-goldberg\/","abstract":" .\u202f.\u202f. COURT OF APPEALS OF VIRGINIA .\u202f.\u202f. ","court_html":"<abbr title=\"Court of Appeals\">COA<\/abbr>"},"3":{"name":" .\u202f.\u202f. Rebecca Benedict-Miller v. Virginia Department of Social .\u202f.\u202f. ","case_number":"0323211","citation":null,"date":"2021-11-23","url":"https:\/\/www.courtlistener.com\/opinion\/5300129\/rebecca-benedict-miller-v-virginia-department-of-social-services\/","abstract":" .\u202f.\u202f. COURT OF APPEALS OF VIRGINIA .\u202f.\u202f. ","court_html":"<abbr title=\"Court of Appeals\">COA<\/abbr>"}}}},{"id":375371,"structure_id":53369,"section_number":"63.2-1506","catch_line":"Family assessments by local departments","url":"\/63.2-1506\/","token":"63.2\/III\/15\/1\/63.2-1506","metadata":false},{"id":375370,"structure_id":53369,"section_number":"63.2-1506.1","catch_line":"Human trafficking assessments by local departments","url":"\/63.2-1506.1\/","token":"63.2\/III\/15\/1\/63.2-1506.1","metadata":false},{"id":375372,"structure_id":53369,"section_number":"63.2-1507","catch_line":"Cooperation by state entities","url":"\/63.2-1507\/","token":"63.2\/III\/15\/1\/63.2-1507","metadata":false}],"previous_section":{"id":375364,"structure_id":53369,"section_number":"63.2-1500","catch_line":"Repealed","url":"\/63.2-1500\/","token":"63.2\/III\/15\/1\/63.2-1500","metadata":false},"next_section":{"id":375366,"structure_id":53369,"section_number":"63.2-1502","catch_line":"Establishment of Child-Protective Services Unit; duties","url":"\/63.2-1502\/","token":"63.2\/III\/15\/1\/63.2-1502","metadata":false},"metadata":false,"official_url":"https:\/\/law.lis.virginia.gov\/vacode\/63.2-1501\/","history_text":"<p>This law was first created in 1975. The record of its establishment is cataloged in chapter 341 of that year\u2019s edition of \u201cActs of Assembly,\u201d the annual state publication listing all changes made to the Code of Virginia in that year. Unfortunately, the 1975 \u201cActs\u201d aren\u2019t available online. It has been modified 6 times. Those modifications are cataloged by \u201cThe Acts of Assembly,\u201d a state publication, by year and chapter. Those modifications that can be read on the General Assembly\u2019s website will be linked accordingly. Those modifications are as follows: in 1981, chapter 123; in 1986, chapter 308; in 1990, chapter 760; in 1995, chapter <a href=\"https:\/\/legacylis.virginia.gov\/cgi-bin\/legp604.exe?951+ful+CHAP0520\">520<\/a>; in 2000, chapter <a href=\"https:\/\/legacylis.virginia.gov\/cgi-bin\/legp604.exe?001+ful+CHAP0500\">500<\/a>; in 2002, chapter <a href=\"https:\/\/legacylis.virginia.gov\/cgi-bin\/legp604.exe?021+ful+CHAP0747\">747<\/a>.<\/p>","references":[{"id":359116,"section_number":"32.1-162.15:1.14","catch_line":"(Effective July 1, 2026) Confidentiality of complainant's identity","order_by":null,"url":"\/32.1-162.15_1.14\/"},{"id":359118,"section_number":"32.1-162.15:1.16","catch_line":"(Effective July 1, 2026) Retaliation against reports of child or adult abuse or neglect","order_by":null,"url":"\/32.1-162.15_1.16\/"}],"refers_to":false,"permalink":{"id":1498719,"object_type":"law","relational_id":375365,"identifier":"63.2-1501","token":"63.2\/III\/15\/1\/63.2-1501","url":"\/63.2-1501\/","edition_id":2,"permalink":0,"preferred":1},"url":"\/63.2-1501\/","token":"63.2\/III\/15\/1\/63.2-1501","dublin_core":{"Title":"Definitions","Type":"Text","Format":"text\/html","Identifier":"\u00a7 63.2-1501","Relation":"Code of Virginia"},"html":"\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<section><p>As used in this chapter unless the context requires a different meaning:<\/p><p>&#8220;<span class=\"dictionary\">Court<\/span>&#8221; means the juvenile and domestic relations district <span class=\"dictionary\">court<\/span> of the county or city.<\/p><p>&#8220;<span class=\"dictionary\">Prevention<\/span>&#8221; means efforts that (i) promote health and competence in people and (ii) create, promote and strengthen environments that nurture people in their development.<\/p><\/section>","plain_text":"                                 CODE OF VIRGINIA\n\nDEFINITIONS (\u00a7 63.2-1501)\n\nAs used in this chapter unless the context requires a different meaning:\n\n&#8220;Court&#8221; means the juvenile and domestic relations district court of\nthe county or city.\n\n&#8220;Prevention&#8221; means efforts that (i) promote health and competence in\npeople and (ii) create, promote and strengthen environments that nurture people\nin their development.\n\nHISTORY: 1975, c. 341, \u00a7 63.1-248.2; 1981, c. 123; 1986, c. 308; 1990, c. 760;\n1995, c. 520; 2000, c. 500; 2002, c. 747.","edition":{"id":2,"name":"2026","slug":"2026","date_created":"2026-07-16 18:40:23","date_modified":"2026-08-02 15:14:36","current":1,"order_by":2,"last_import":"2026-08-02 12:37:30"}}