Rule 3:5.The Summons.

Process in a Virginia civil action takes the form of a summons, and the rule spells out its substance: it identifies the court and the civil action number, notifies the party served that a written response must be filed within 21 days or the case may proceed to judgment by default or after a hearing, states that personal appearance isn’t required, and closes with the date and the clerk’s signature.

Defendants aren’t required to wait for that summons — they may appear voluntarily, file responsive pleadings, and waive process, except that divorce and annulment cases follow their own controlling statutes on that point. For defendants who don’t appear voluntarily, the clerk issues a summons and attaches it securely to the front of each copy of the complaint, then delivers the attached copies for service as the plaintiff directs.

A defendant who is a person under a disability is treated differently in most cases: except in divorce, annulment, or personal-judgment cases (and subject to Code § 8.01-297), no summons needs to be issued or served on that defendant, because the procedure in Code § 8.01-9 itself satisfies due process. Separately, the clerk must issue additional summonses on request, dated as of the day of issuance.

Timing matters even after service starts. No order, judgment, or decree can be entered against a defendant served with process more than a year after the action was instituted against that defendant, unless the court finds as fact that the plaintiff exercised due diligence in trying to achieve timely service.