Opinion Digests | Virginia Lawyers Weekly

No Extradition on Deficient Documents

By Deborah Elkins
Published: May 25, 2012
Tags: Criminal, Fairfax County Circuit Court, Judge R. Terrence Ney, Virginia Circuit Courts

A Fairfax Circuit Court denies extradition of petitioner to Florida, as the extradition papers do not accurately state the status of the charges and the alleged offenses, and incorrectly assert that defendant fled Florida to avoid prosecution, when he was on probation and no proof has been offered that he could not leave the state.
In [...]

School Stock Fraud Case Advances

By Deborah Elkins
Published: May 25, 2012
Tags: Fairfax County Circuit Court, Judge Charles James Maxfield, Securities, Virginia Circuit Courts

An investor who thought his $200,000 payment to defendants was buying 40,000 shares in C2 Future stock that would allow expansion of an educational company into Korea, not “office expenses for existing schools,” can sue defendants for an alleged fraudulent scheme in violation of the Virginia Securities Act; the Fairfax Circuit Court denies defendants’ summary [...]

Law Firm Must Detail Guardian Services

By Deborah Elkins
Published: May 25, 2012
Tags: Fairfax County Circuit Court, Judge Leslie M. Alden, Virginia Circuit Courts, Wills & Trusts

On a report by the Commissioner of Accounts and review of these seven cases in which a law firm has served in multiple roles, including guardian, conservator and trustee, for incapacitated persons, the Fairfax Circuit Court orders the law firm to provide detailed descriptions of the services, who performed them and at what hourly rate, [...]

Improper Service in ‘Reopen Case’

By Deborah Elkins
Published: May 25, 2012
Tags: Domestic Relations, Fairfax County Circuit Court, Judge Jonathan C. Thacher, Virginia Circuit Courts

In this domestic relations “reopen case” in which father seeks to reduce support and complains he has been denied visitation, the Fairfax Circuit Court grants mother’s motion for reconsideration of an earlier support modification, as mother did not receive proper notice, and dismisses father’s Rule to Show Cause regarding mother’s alleged denial of visitation.
Essentially, Va. [...]

‘Scope of Employment’ May Cover Wreck

By Deborah Elkins
Published: May 25, 2012
Tags: Fairfax County Circuit Court, Judge R. Terrence Ney, Negligence, Virginia Circuit Courts

The estate of an employee who died in an auto accident after being picked up by a coworker, and who sued the coworker and the employer, gets another chance to retry its case, as the Fairfax Circuit Court grants reconsideration and says the evidence clearly showed the coworker was acting within the scope of his [...]

Time for Discovery Response Extended

By Deborah Elkins
Published: May 24, 2012
Tags: Civil Procedure, Judge M. Hannah Lauck, U.S. District Court - Eastern District

In this contract litigation between a mortgage company and defendant loan broker, a Richmond U.S. District Court grants defendant, who says it is “out-of-state, defunct and assetless,” extra time to respond to discovery requests, but no extra time to object to discovery.
On Aug. 25, 2011, SunTrust filed a complaint alleging defendant LCMG breached the parties’ [...]

ADA Plaintiff Exhausted Most Claims

By Deborah Elkins
Published: May 24, 2012
Tags: Employment Discrimination, Judge Henry E. Hudson, U.S. District Court - Eastern District

A former project manager for Servpro of Richmond who alleges she was fired after she refused to see the company-designated doctor and went to her own treating doctor instead to document her disability, has exhausted her disability discrimination claims for harassment and wrongful discharge, but not for retaliation, and the Richmond U.S. District Court dismisses [...]

Arbitration Denied in Franchise Contract

By Deborah Elkins
Published: May 24, 2012
Tags: Contract, Judge James C. Turk, U.S. District Court - Western District

A Roanoke U.S. District Court denies defendant auto restoration franchise’s motion to compel arbitration of a former franchisee’s suit alleging he is not covered by the Franchise Agreement’s noncompete clause because the arbitration clause, as drafted, suggests the clause was meant to cover inter-office disputes, not disputes between franchisor and franchisee.
Defendant Total Car Franchising is [...]

Specific Performance Suit Dismissed

By Deborah Elkins
Published: May 24, 2012
Tags: Contract, Judge James P. Jones, U.S. District Court - Western District

An Abingdon U.S. District Court dismisses this suit seeking specific performance of a real estate purchase contract, because the complaint fails to allege that non-binding mediation, a condition precedent to the suit, has occurred or been waived.
The agreement requires the parties to submit any dispute or claims arising out of the agreement to non-binding mediation [...]

No ‘Fraudulent Joinder’ in Auto Accident Case

By Deborah Elkins
Published: May 24, 2012
Tags: Judge James C. Turk, Products Liability, U.S. District Court - Western District

In plaintiff’s suit alleging severe and permanent injuries after she swerved in her 1995 Mazda Miata to avoid an object in the road and the vehicle turned over because the vehicle allegedly failed to provide “reasonable occupant protection in the event of a rollover accident,” the Roanoke U.S. District Court remands the case to state [...]

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