Virginia Lawyers Weekly articles from November 2008

Virginia Lawyers Weekly archives from November 2008

Virginia Lawyers in the News: November 3, 2008.
November 3, 2008... Byline: Sarah Rodriguez Janie L. Rhodes has joined the Alexandria office of MercerTrigiani, where she will focus her practice on representing common interest communities and real estate developers in transactions and developments. Rhodes...

Business fraud is an issue in Virginia dentist's divorce.
November 3, 2008... Byline: Alan Cooper The relationship of Marlin and Sheila Rekow began as a marriage of economic convenience but soon became romantic as well, and the couple married in December 1995. Before the start of the relationship, Sheila Rekow,...

Federal judge lets Northern Virginia condo buyers out of their contracts.
November 3, 2008... Byline: Alan Cooper The developers of condominiums in the Merrifield Town Center in Northern Virginia prevailed before one federal judge in their efforts to keep deposits to buy the units after the purchasers refused to close on them. ...

At long last an evidence code? Supreme Court of Virginia laying groundwork for adoption in 2010.
November 3, 2008... Byline: Peter Vieth Signals from the Supreme Court of Virginia indicate that a two-decade effort to establish official rules of evidence for Virginia courts may be nearing fruition, according to a lawyer who has advanced the cause since...

Verdicts & Settlements November 3, 2008: Jury doubles award entered by general district judge.
November 3, 2008... Byline: Virginia Lawyers Weekly The case involved a claim for soft tissue injuries to the neck and back on account of a motor vehicle accident in which the defendant's car rear-ended the plaintiff's car. The 28-year-old female plaintiff's...

Verdicts & Settlements November 3, 2008: Woman's leg broken in Danville collision.(Brief article)
November 3, 2008... Byline: Sarah Rodriguez LaWanda Townes was driving a 1999 Dodge on Sept. 21, 2007, at the intersection of Westover and Piedmont drives in Danville when she was involved in a wreck with a 2005 Mini Cooper driven by Lorena Barr. Traffic flow...

Alexandria U.S. District Court: Buffalo Wings Factory Inc. v. Mohd.(Brief article)
November 3, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Intellectual Property - Trademark - Wings Restaurant Former employees of the Buffalo Wings Factory, which operates four Northern Virginia restaurants that specialize in buffalo wings, who allegedly infringed the...

Alexandria U.S. District Court: Webb v. Lappin.
November 3, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Tort - FTCA - Inmate Injury - Bivens Claim Although the 4th Circuit has yet to rule on whether an inmate injured while on work detail is precluded under the Inmate Accident Compensation Act from bringing a Bivens...

Richmond U.S. District Court: Adolf Jewelers Inc. v. Jewelers Mut. Ins. Co.
November 3, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Insurance - Policy Coverage - Jewelry Store Embezzlement A jewelry store seeking additional coverage after defendant insurance carrier's adjustment of the store's claim based on an employee's theft over a...

Abingdon U.S. District Court: Nicewonder Group LLC v. Astrue.
November 3, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Administrative - 'Related Person' - Coal Act - Arbitrary & Capricious Standard A decision by the Commissioner of Social Security that plaintiff LLC is responsible for coverage of coal retirees as a related person...

Lynchburg U.S. District Court: Crump v. Mack.
November 3, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Tort - Business Tort - Consultant Agreement A Lynchburg U.S. District Court dismisses this suit against the three individual defendants, claiming unjust enrichment and tortious interference with plaintiff...

Lynchburg U.S. District Court: Crump v. Mack.(Brief article)
November 3, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Tort - Business Tort - Consultant Agreement - Amount In Controversy A Lynchburg U.S. District Court declines to dismiss this suit for unjust enrichment and tortious interference filed by plaintiff business...

Virginia Court of Appeals: Volkswagen of America Inc. v. Smit.(Brief article)
November 3, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Administrative - Franchise Act - VW Passats & Beetles - Commerce Clause The Court of Appeals affirms a circuit court judgment upholding the decision by the Commissioner of Motor Vehicles that Volkswagen of...

Virginia Court of Appeals: Harris v. Commonwealth.
November 3, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Criminal - Attempted Robbery - Juvenile - Transfer Hearing A defendant's convictions of attempted robbery and use of a firearm are affirmed by the Court of Appeals despite his claim that the trial court erred in...

Virginia Court of Appeals: Ellis v. Commonwealth.(Brief article)
November 3, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Criminal - Malicious Wounding - Protective Order- 911 Call - Rule 5A:18 A defendant convicted of aggravated malicious wounding of his former girlfriend and violation of a protective order cannot challenge...

Virginia Court of Appeals: Commonwealth v. Moody.
November 3, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Search & Seizure - Suppression Order Reversal - Probable Cause Police had probable cause to arrest defendant after they seized a handgun found on the seat of the vehicle defendant had walked away from when...

Virginia Court of Appeals: Wood v. Commonwealth.(Brief article)
November 3, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Criminal - Child Sexual Abuse - Child's Testimony Although the fourth-grade girl consistently denied sexual contact with defendant until after he moved out of the home where she lived with others, her detailed...

Virginia Court of Appeals: Pritchett v. Commonwealth.
November 3, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Criminal - Murder - Robbery - Venue Change - Pretrial Publicity A trial court did not err in denying defendant a change of venue because of pretrial publicity and defendant's convictions of first-degree murder,...

Rappahannock County Circuit Court: Rekow v. Rekow.
November 3, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Domestic Relations - Equitable Distribution - Valuation - Dental Practice A wife who previously owned and managed a dental practice and who helped husband build his dental practice into a clinic with revenues of...

Fauquier County Circuit Court: Cavanna v. Cavanna.(Brief article)
November 3, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Domestic Relations - Show Cause Petition - Real Estate Sale A Fauquier County Circuit will hold a show cause on husband's petition alleging wife has sold real estate to a third party in violation of the final...

Arlington Circuit Court: Blufer v. Caliman v. Deeds.
November 3, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Civil Procedure - Collateral Estoppel - Injured Passengers - Contribution Claim Where a jury found both Driver D and Driver C jointly and severally liable to an injured passenger from Driver C's car, and Driver C...

Montgomery County Circuit Court: Woody v. Carter.
November 3, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Tort - Defamation - Blog Postings A developer's defamation suit against a defendant who posted comments critical of the developer to a Web site called thinkchristiansburg.com is dismissed by a Montgomery County...

Virginia Court of Appeals: Shadwell v. Commonwealth of Va., DSS, DCSE.(Brief article)
November 3, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Civil Procedure - Appeal Bond - Child Support Arrearage A father who owed $115,758 in child support cannot pursue an appeal in the Court of Appeals, as the trial court did not err in ruling that the father had to...

Jury selection: Who hurts, who helps.
November 10, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Trials may be on the wane but lawyers still want to know how to choose a jury. Lawyers trying to pick people who will decide for their client may review juror questionnaires and do Google searches, or hire a...

Father wasn't 'patient' of OB/GYN; Mother's $1.6M verdict nixed for lack of evidence.
November 10, 2008... Byline: Peter Vieth Doctors won a double victory at the Supreme Court of Virginia in a case where a couple sued two obstetricians over the birth of twin daughters with Down syndrome. In Fruiterman v. Granata (VLW 008-6-101), the high...

Amend advance directive law, says Virginia mental health panel.
November 10, 2008... Byline: Alan Cooper The Commission on Mental Health Law Reform thinks a person with mental health issues should have more say over how he is treated if and when he becomes incapable of directing his own mental health treatment. The...

Fugitive father living in Spain can't appeal custody ruling in Virginia.
November 10, 2008... Byline: Alan Cooper A father living in Spain who is a fugitive from Virginia justice forfeits his right to appeal a custody ruling involving his son. Last month, the Supreme Court of Virginia, following the lead of the Virginia Court...

For the Defense: Wellman becomes chief of Virginia Association of Defense Attorneys.
November 10, 2008... Byline: Alan Cooper When Stanley P. Wellman joined the firm of Browder, Russell, Butcher & Morris in 1987, he received the type of advice one expects from a mentor, especially one who specializes in insurance coverage: work hard and pay...

Virginia accountant gets big 'reward' for blowing whistle.
November 10, 2008... Byline: Peter Vieth An accountant who spotted a $155,000 discrepancy in the books at the credit union where he worked will pocket almost that much from the recent $640,000 settlement of his state whistleblower lawsuit. Fairfax attorney...

Case over competing spicy Buffalo wings restaurants in Virginia produces three opinions.
November 10, 2008... Byline: Peter Vieth Attorneys for a restaurant chain specializing in spicy Buffalo wings are searching for assets and demanding nearly $70,000 in attorneys' fees after eight months of effort to enforce a consent order against an...

Verdicts & Settlements November 10, 2008: Physician's directives disputed in complications.
November 10, 2008... Byline: Virginia Lawyers Weekly Defense Verdict The decedent was a patient of the defendant family practitioner. He was seen by the defendant at 4 p.m. and died of a diabetic crisis approximately seven hours later that night. The wife and...

Verdicts & Settlements November 10, 2008:Sovereign immunity plea fails in wreck caused by policeman.
November 10, 2008... Byline: Virginia Lawyers Weekly $2,220,000 Settlement David Barnes, an 18-year-old male, was a front-seat passenger in a tow truck driven by his employer. The tow truck was traveling eastbound in the left lane of U.S. 460 in Sussex County...

Verdicts & Settlements November 10, 2008: Medical study volunteer alleges inadequate disclosure.
November 10, 2008... Byline: Virginia Lawyers Weekly $190,000 Settlement A 58-year-old male volunteered to participate in a multi-center clinical trial studying the analgesic efficacy and safety of a new medication. Plaintiff signed a consent form...

4th Circuit: Lightner v. City of Wilmington, N.C.(Brief article)
November 10, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Employment Discrimination - Title VII - Race - Gender - Police Employee A 53-year-old white male who was responsible for ethics investigations in the City of Wilmington, N.C. police department has no Title VII claim...

Newport News U.S. District: U.S. v. Berry.
November 10, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Criminal - Cocaine - School Proximity - Identification Theft A Newport News U.S. District Judge is troubled by the expansion of interstate commerce to include a cocaine dealer who simply used a false identification,...

Richmond U.S. District Court: ACMA USA Inc. v. Surefil LLC.
November 10, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Contract - Industrial Machine - UCC - Michigan Law In this convoluted breach of contract action involving defendant's purchase of a custom-built industrial machine from plaintiff and its Italian affiliate, a Richmond...

Alexandria U.S. District Court: Murnan, Trustee v. Stewart Title Guaranty Co.
November 10, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Insurance - Title Insurance - Trustee Suit - Tax Liens In this diversity action for breach of a title insurance policy, an Alexandria U.S. District Court grants partial summary judgment to plaintiff, trustee on...

Supreme Court of Virginia: Vincent v. Commonwealth.
November 10, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Criminal - B&E - Larceny Intent With no evidence to show a drunken defendant looked at or took any items from the retail store he broke into by using a metal pole to shatter a glass door, the defendant cannot be...

Supreme Court of Virginia: Ortiz v. Commonwealth.
November 10, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Criminal - Child Rape - Other Crimes Evidence - Rape Shield Law At defendant's trial for raping his stepgranddaughter for several years beginning when she was four or five and continuing for several years, the trial...

Virginia Supreme Court: Commonwealth v. Garrett.
November 10, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Criminal - Civil Commitment - Sexually Violent Predators Act - Dismissed Juvenile Charges In considering commitment of Marvin Garrett as a sexually violent predator, a circuit court erred in ruling that Code s....

Supreme Court of Virginia: Virginia Baptist Homes Inc. v. Botetourt County.
November 10, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Taxation - Baptist Retirement Home - Property Tax Exemption A Botetourt County property called The Glebe, a home for the elderly operated by the Virginia Baptist Homes Inc., is used for a religious purpose and...

Fairfax Circuit Court: Sasson v. Shenhar.
November 10, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Domestic Relations - Custody - Fugitive Father - Move To Spain In a case of first impression, the Supreme Court of Virginia upholds application of the fugitive disentitlement doctrine to say that a father who removed...

Virginia Supreme Court: Fruiterman v. Granata.
November 10, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Medical Malpractice - Wrongful Birth - Prenatal Testing - Dad Doctor-Patient Relationship A mother who alleges defendant ob-gyn failed to inform her of a first-trimester test, chorionic villus sampling, that...

Supreme Court of Virginia: Norfolk & Portsmouth Belt Line Railroad Co. v. Wilson.
November 10, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Negligence - FELA - 'Close Clearance' - Statutory Standard The Supreme Court of Virginia reverses a $330,000 FELA award to a railroad worker who was injured when he was riding on the side of a railroad boxcar that...

Supreme Court of Virginia: Potomac Edison Co. d/b/a Allegheny Power v. State Corp. Comm'n.
November 10, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Administrative - SCC - Electric Utility Rate The State Corporation Commission did not err in setting an electric retail rate in an amount less than the rate requested by appellant, the Potomac Edison Company, which...

Supreme Court of Virginia: Harris v. Commonwealth.
November 10, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Search & Seizure - Anonymous Tip - Investigative Stop - DUI Arrest Although police could corroborate some elements of an anonymous tip - the driver's shirt, the color and make of his car, a partial license plate...

Supreme Court of Virginia: Britt v. Commonwealth.
November 10, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Criminal - Grand Larceny - Goods Valuation - Cigarette Theft The Supreme Court of Virginia reverses defendant's conviction of grand larceny from a convenience store because the prosecution's proffer of $410.59 in...

Supreme Court of Virginia: Moore v. Commonwealth.
November 10, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Search & Seizure - Traffic Stop - Peeling Inspection Sticker A police officer's stop of a vehicle violated the Fourth Amendment because the officer stopped the vehicle solely because of his brief observation that the...

Supreme Court of Virginia: Turman v. Commonwealth.
November 10, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Criminal - Rape - Flight - Jury Instruction At defendant's trial for rape of a female friend, the trial court erred in instructing the jury that it could consider defendant's departure from the woman's apartment...

Virginia Supreme Court: George v. Commonwealth.
November 10, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Criminal - Embezzlement - Indictment - Fatal Variance A physician who withheld funds from his employees' pay for state income taxes, but did not forward the withheld tax payments to the Commonwealth of Virginia, is...

Virginia Supreme Court: Milazzo v. Commonwealth.(Brief article)
November 10, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Criminal - Hit & Run - Police Pursuit - Striking Police Vehicle The Virginia Supreme Court affirms the felony hit-and-run conviction of a driver who was being pursued by police for speeding, and who, after being...

Supreme Court of Virginia: White v. Commonwealth.
November 10, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Criminal - First-Offender Statute - Cocaine Conviction The Supreme Court of Virginia reverses a judgment allowing revocation of the first-offender status under Va. Code s. 18.2-251 of a defendant convicted of cocaine...

Virginia Supreme Court: Brickhouse v. Commonwealth.
November 10, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Criminal - Drug Conviction - Intent To Distribute - Principal In 2nd Degree Although drugs and drug paraphernalia were in plain view in the house of a woman who lived there and was outside when police arrived with a...

Supreme Court of Virginia: Hasan v. Commonwealth.(Brief article)
November 10, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Criminal - Miranda Warnings - Custody - Gun In Car The Supreme Court of Virginia reverses a Court of Appeals judgment upholding a defendant's conviction of weapon possession because, contrary to the lower court...

Supreme Court of Virginia: Mayfield-Brown v. Sayegh.
November 10, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Negligence - Charitable Immunity - University Physicians The Supreme Court of Virginia holds that Eastern Virginia Medical School Academic Physicians and Surgeons Health Services Foundation does not have charitable...

Virginia Court of Appeals: Fadness v. Fadness.
November 10, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Domestic Relations - Divorce Grounds - Equitable Distribution - Spousal Support A husband, who with wife has litigated divorce issues for years, and now complains to the Court of Appeals about division of marital...

Virginia Court of Appeals: Brannon v. Commonwealth.
November 10, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Criminal - Leaving Accident Scene - Victim's Injury Where a woman got out of her car and walked back to ask defendant if he was OK after he rear-ended her car with his pickup truck, and her vehicle suffered only $400...

Virginia Court of Appeals: Chesapeake Bay Foundation Inc. v. Commonwealth.(Brief article)
November 10, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Environmental - Administrative - Water Protection Permit The Court of Appeals reverses a circuit court decision that upheld the extension of a Virginia Water Protection Permit previously issued to the City of Newport...

Virginia Court of Appeals: Wise v. Velazquez.
November 10, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Domestic Relations - Grandparent Visitation - Deceased Mother A four-year-old girl whose biological mother died shortly after the child's birth will have scheduled visitation with her maternal grandmother, the Court...

Richmond Circuit Court: Wintergreen Partners v. Bowman and Brooks, Spencer, McGuireWoods.
November 10, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Attorneys - Legal Malpractice - Insurer Claims Liability and excess carriers who covered an $8.3 million verdict against the Wintergreen resort have no claim for legal malpractice under Virginia law, a Richmond...

Richmond Circuit Court: Commonwealth v. Supportkids Inc.
November 10, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Domestic Relations - Child Support Collection - Private Company A Richmond Circuit Court says the commonwealth can sue a private child support collection agency that allegedly has been conducting illegal collection...

Norfolk Circuit Court: Hankins v. Hankins.
November 10, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Real Estate - Partition - Costs Plaintiffs who brought suits to partition real estate they acquired partly by inheritance and partly by conveyances from siblings are ordered by a Norfolk Circuit Court to each pay...

Fairfax Circuit Court: Strategic Enterprise Solutions Inc. v. Ikuma.
November 10, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Employment - Noncompete - Trade Secrets - IT Company A noncompete that prohibits competition within a 100-square mile radius and would prevent a defense contractor's former employee from reporting a terrorist threat...

Richmond Circuit Court: Bartlett v. Commonwealth.
November 10, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Municipal - Bond Issuance - Transportation Construction A Richmond Circuit Court grants summary judgment to defendant Commonwealth of Virginia in this suit challenging the issuance of financing bonds to raise revenue...

Richmond Circuit Court: Ward v. Ward Trucking of PA LLC.
November 10, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Medical Malpractice - Expert Witness Designation - Fact Witnesses Physicians who treated plaintiff are not just fact witnesses but are covered by Rule 4:1(b)(4) and plaintiff's expert witness designation must specify...

Charlottesville Circuit Court: Reis v. Hansen.(Brief article)
November 10, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Negligence - Discovery - Auto Accident Report A Charlottesville Circuit Court grants plaintiff's motion to order defendant to produce any and all statements taken from defendant including a statement given to Erie...

Supreme Court of Virginia: Sadler v. Commonwealth.
November 11, 2008... Byline: Deborah Elkins Criminal - Indecent Liberties - Custodial Relationship - Softball Coach Although defendant, the coach of a teenage girls' traveling softball team, contends he was not acting in a custodial relationship when he...

Lisa Clement enters the Virginia Ass'n of Defense Attorneys' leadership loop.
November 17, 2008... Byline: Paul Fletcher Richmond lawyer Lisa F. Clement has entered the leadership loop of the Virginia Association of Defense Attorneys. She became the group's secretary at its annual meeting in Richmond last month. Assuming a normal...

'Red flag' rules catching some businesses by surprise: scheme seeks to help prevent identity theft.
November 17, 2008... Byline: Peter Vieth Lawyers who advise businesses are fielding calls from clients about new federal requirements for identity theft prevention programs. While lawyers say business owners are often surprised to find they're affected by the...

Virginia State Bar: loosen the rule on claiming to be 'specialist'.
November 17, 2008... Byline: Alan Cooper The Virginia State Bar wants to loosen the ethical rule governing whether a lawyer can claim to be certified as a specialist. The loosening stops well short of what some states are doing, but it's still further than...

Commentary: changes by Obama will reshape labor law.(President-elect Barack Obama)
November 17, 2008... Byline: Jeffrey L. Rhodes The election of Barack Obama promises to bring change to Washington, D.C., but the question most employment lawyers are asking these days is, Who will benefit most from this change? The answer to this question...

Family fight over breakup of Virginia farm may be headed for Supreme Court of Va.
November 17, 2008... Byline: Peter Vieth A family fight over the proposed breakup of a showplace cattle farm in Northern Virginia may be headed for the Supreme Court of Virginia. One family member argues that the courts should not force her to share the cost...

Federal jury in Richmond awards woman $200K in reverse discrimination suit.
November 17, 2008... Byline: Alan Cooper A white woman claiming she was bypassed when a predominately black high school chose a new principal has won a $200,000 reverse discrimination verdict. A federal jury in Richmond returned the verdict for Pamela K....

Senator Toddy Puller: audit the Virginia Board of Medicine.
November 17, 2008... Byline: Alan Cooper Sen. Toddy Puller wants the Joint Legislative and Audit Review Commission to take a second look at the Virginia Board of Medicine. The request by the Mount Vernon Democrat in Senate Joint Resolution 276 comes almost...

Obama can reshape 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals by filling numerous vacancies.(President-elect Barack Obama)
November 17, 2008... Byline: Steve Lash and Alan Cooper With President-elect Barack Obama poised to take office Jan. 20 - and four vacancies on the 15-member 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals - court watchers predict the completion of a seismic shift on the...