January 29, 2026
Virginia State Bar Celebrates the Clients' Protection Fund's 50th Anniversary
The Virginia State Bar (VSB) created the Clients’ Protection Fund (CPF) to reimburse clients who suffer a quantifiable financial loss due to the dishonest conduct of Virginia lawyers. Established on January 1, 1976, the CPF is celebrating 50 years in operation this year.
Since 1976, the CPF has issued a total of $9,287,338 in reimbursements to petitioners. From 2021 to 2025, the CPF paid out more than $2 million in reimbursements to petitioners, with over $10 million remaining in the fund at the end of the 2025 fiscal year.
Initially dubbed the Clients’ Security Fund, the CPF is intended to be a remedy of last resort for clients who cannot obtain reimbursement from other sources. It was created to promote public confidence in the administration of justice and the honor and integrity of the legal profession by reimbursing all or part of losses sustained by clients or those to whom a fiduciary duty is owed as a result of a Virginia lawyer’s dishonest conduct.
VSB Council (Council) appoints members of the CPF Board to receive, hold, manage, invest, and distribute the monies transferred to the fund in accordance with the CPF rules and Council oversight. The board consists of 14 members, one of whom is a non-lawyer, appointed by the Council. There is one member on the board for each of the 10 disciplinary districts in Virginia, and four are appointed from the Commonwealth at large.
Read more about the CPF in the February 2026 issue of Virginia Lawyer.