Court Upholds Denial of Substation Expansion

Church Property Subject to Constructive Trust

By Deborah Elkins
Published: April 23, 2013
Tags: Justice Cleo E. Powell, Real Estate, Supreme Court of Virginia

In this protracted and complex dispute between plaintiffs, the Episcopal Diocese of Virginia and the Protestant Episcopal Church in the U.S., and seven local congregations that disaffiliated from the larger church, plaintiffs have demonstrated a proprietary interest in the church property at issue and the Supreme Court of Virginia says a constructive trust may be [...]

Law Firm Fee Payment Upheld

By Deborah Elkins
Published: April 23, 2013
Tags: Justice S. Bernard Goodwyn, Real Estate, Supreme Court of Virginia

A law firm gets to keep $130,000 in attorney’s fees after a sale of real estate as part of a disputed estate case; the Supreme Court of Virginia says the circuit court had jurisdiction to distribute the fee as part of the sale proceeds in the settlement of the related equity actions involving trust and [...]

Neighbors Must Share Driveway Access

By Deborah Elkins
Published: April 22, 2013
Tags: Judge Melvin R. Hughes Jr., Real Estate, Richmond Circuit Court, Virginia Circuit Courts

In this dispute of recent vintage between neighbors over a shared driveway, the Richmond Circuit Court holds that each party is mutually enjoined from unreasonably interfering with the other with respect to access to their respective properties, and neither may block access to the other unreasonably at any particular time. There is no dispute that [...]

Landlord May Have to Cover Roofer’s Damage

By Deborah Elkins
Published: April 22, 2013
Tags: Judge Melvin R. Hughes Jr., Real Estate, Richmond Circuit Court, Virginia Circuit Courts

In this subrogation case, the Richmond Circuit Court overrules a landlord’s demurrer to a claim that it is ultimately liable for the alleged negligence of defendant roofing company that allegedly caused water and debris damage to the lessee. Generally, a landlord does not have a common law duty to maintain a demised premises that is [...]

No Sanction for Foreclosure Complaint

By Deborah Elkins
Published: April 22, 2013
Tags: Judge Melvin R. Hughes Jr., Real Estate, Richmond Circuit Court, Virginia Circuit Courts

A Richmond Circuit Court dismisses plaintiff homeowner’s RICO claim asserted as a basis for setting aside a foreclosure sale, without leave to amend, and denies defendants’ motion to sanction plaintiff under Va. Code § 8.01-271.1 for pursuit of this claim. The underlying facts involve an alleged invalid appointment of a substitute trustee as a basis [...]

Variance Denial for Billboard Upheld

By Deborah Elkins
Published: April 16, 2013
Tags: Judge Melvin R. Hughes Jr., Real Estate, Richmond Circuit Court, Virginia Circuit Courts

In the latest round of this years-long dispute over a billboard sign located on the tip of Mayo Island in the city of Richmond, a Richmond Circuit Court upholds a decision by the board of zoning appeals denying appellants’ request for a variance to permit use of the property with the billboard above the applicable [...]

HOA Wins Challenge to Exclusive Cable Contract

By Deborah Elkins
Published: April 10, 2013
Tags: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Judge J. Harvie Wilkinson III, Real Estate

A cable provider’s exclusive contract to provide cable services to a real estate development violated an FCC order that prohibited such exclusivity arrangements, and the 4th Circuit affirms judgment for the homeowners’ association that successfully challenged the contract. Codified at 47 C.F.R. § 76.2000(a), the Federal Communications Commission’s Exclusivity Order states that no cable operator [...]

Court Limits Suit Against Trustee

By Deborah Elkins
Published: April 3, 2013
Tags: Judge Norman K. Moon, Real Estate, U.S. District Court - Western District

A Charlottesville U.S. District Court says that because the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act is not incorporated into the terms of the Deed of Trust, a violation of the FDCPA cannot support a claim for breach of that agreement, and that claim must be dismissed. Plaintiffs claim the acceleration notice on a mortgage debt violated [...]

No Quiet Title Suit to Collect Architect Fee

By Deborah Elkins
Published: April 1, 2013
Tags: Judge James R. Spencer, Real Estate, U.S. District Court - Eastern District

An architectural firm hired to provide design services for the proposed National Slavery Museum cannot enforce a judgment lien on property owned by the museum in Fredericksburg; the Richmond U.S. District Court says there is no controversy ripe to support a request for declaratory judgment and plaintiff’s status as a judgment creditor does not support [...]