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Employment At-Will: Virginia

Employment At-Will requirements for other states

Federal law and guidance on this subject should be reviewed together with this section.

Author: Michael Barnsback; Marc Smith, Smith, Lease & Goldstein, LLC

Summary

  • Employment relationships in Virginia are presumed to be at-will, meaning the employment relationship can be terminated by either party, at any time, with or without cause. See The At-Will Relationship.
  • Virginia recognizes limited exceptions to the at-will presumption, including written contracts and public policy exceptions. See Employment At-Will Exceptions.
  • At-will employees in Virginia challenging a discharge may file claims against their employers under tort theories so long as the plaintiff employee is able to satisfy an evidentiary burden. See Tort Considerations.