The Virginia Bar Association is the independent voice of the Virginia lawyer, advancing the highest ideals of the profession through advocacy and volunteer service.

The VBA is a voluntary membership organization created and supported by Virginia attorneys.

Key approaches:

• Advocacy: Improve the law by promoting legislative changes
• Professionalism: Expand attorney proficiency through continuing education
• Service: Make our communities better and stronger through member contributions and through increasing access to justice
• Collegiality: Provide opportunities for attorneys to engage with like-minded lawyers through our Sections and Divisions and events

Sections and Divisions

The VBA encourages members to get involved in our sections and divisions that inform their practice, help them better serve their clients and fulfill their personal and professional needs.

• 19 sections plus Judicial, for judges only, and the VBA Pro Bono Council
• Joint ADR Committee of the VBA and VSB
• Young Lawyers Division
• Law Practice Management Division

Conferences and Meetings

VBA events bring together colleagues across Virginia for learning and socializing. Our members also build upon their professional networks through attendance at meetings and conferences, such as:

• All-member meetings (winter and summer)
• Section-specific educational conferences
• Legislative update seminars
• Ethics and professionalism workshops
• Socials and receptions

View Our Full Calendar

Programs

The VBA initiates and supports various programs that advance the ideals of the profession through advocacy and volunteer service:

• The VBA Rule of Law Project, now part of the Center for the Teaching of the Rule of Law
• Legal Food Frenzy, which has been adopted by several other states to raise food and funds for the hungry
• Debates of candidates for statewide office, since 1985

Our History

In July 1888, more than 100 attorneys from across the state formed what has become The Virginia Bar Association. For more than 130 years, the VBA has worked to protect the public through law reform, to enhance access to justice and to elevate “the standard of honor, integrity and courtesy in the legal profession.”

Read more about the history of the VBA.

Our Honorees

At each statewide meeting, the VBA president recognizes outstanding achievement and service in the legal profession by individuals or groups. The highest honor of the association is the Gerald L. Baliles Distinguished Service Award. Presented more than a dozen times, this award acknowledges exceptional service and contributions to the bar and public at large.

See the entire list of awards presented by the VBA.

Our Staff

• VBA Staff Directory

Who Can Join

All licensed Virginia lawyers and lawyers in good standing in the bar in other states and the District of Columbia are eligible for full membership. Membership is not automatic. Interested attorneys must apply to join.

• Regular membership dues range from $225-$300 per calendar year, depending on number of years in practice.
• Government attorneys, full-time law school faculty and attorneys, legal aid lawyers and attorneys working for nonprofits qualify for reduced dues of $150.
• Members of the judiciary also can join for $150 a year.
• Fully retired and fully disabled attorneys are eligible for reduced dues of $150 a year.
• VBA Life Members receive free membership after 40 years of continuous paid membership and attaining age 70.
• Newly admitted to the bar in Virginia? Apply for free VBA membership during the year you become licensed.
• Studying the law? Students enrolled in an ABA-accredited school of law and those formally reading the law in Virginia can advance their careers by joining dues-free in VBA Law School Councils.

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Members and nonmembers support the VBA through its foundation

Members become contributors of The Virginia Bar Association Foundation at one of several giving levels. The VBA Foundation conducts and supports the charitable and educational purposes of the VBA and is a 501(c)(3) charitable entity.

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Affiliation with the Virginia State Bar

The VBA welcomes nonmember lawyers into the Joint Alternative Dispute Resolution Committee of the VBA and VSB. Dues are $35 per year.

VBA by the Numbers

About 4,000 lawyers and law students voluntarily join the VBA. The VBA has a diverse membership by geography, by age, and by type and size of organization.

By geographic location

By gender and age

Membership skews male and VBA membership is well distributed by age.

Work environment

About two-thirds of VBA members work in legal departments or law firms with 14 or fewer lawyers. But not all VBA members work in a law firm environment, including judges, nonprofit and legal aid attorneys, government lawyers and corporate counsel.

VBA member categories

Most VBA members are experienced attorneys. However, the 6-plus years in practice category does not include specialty membership types, such as judges, government attorneys and Life Members. VBA Life Members are age 70 or better and have been active in the VBA for 40 or more years.