The latest news and cases from the Supreme Court of Virginia
">Missing manhole cover ‘open and obvious’ Posted in Civil Cases, Unpublished Orders on Mar 30th, 2012
A woman who fell into an open manhole while walking her dog cannot sue the contractor whose employee was on his way to her house to warn her about the manhole. The Supreme Court of Virginia agreed on March 30 the case could be thrown out on contributory negligence. Elizabeth Badawy left her townhouse to [...]
">Search after home invasion OK Posted in Criminal Cases, Unpublished Orders on Mar 29th, 2012
A man who shot back at armed invaders could not suppress drugs found in his home when police executed a search warrant for firearms and ammunition related to the shoot-out. Armed men invaded the apartment Derrick Wilson shared with a roommate. Wilson was upstairs at the time of the invasion. He got his gun from [...]
">Liability policy not ‘ambiguous” Posted in Civil Cases, Unpublished Orders on Mar 29th, 2012
A vehicle’s driver was a person “responsible for use” of the vehicle under an auto liability policy, and the carrier could not contest coverage on that point, the Supreme Court of Virginia said. The provision at issue said an “Insured Person” meant “any person given permission by you or a family member to use or [...]
">Contractor suit goes back for business conspiracy damages Posted in Civil Cases, Uncategorized, Unpublished Orders on Mar 29th, 2012
A fight over a contractor’s right to excavate on Montgomery County property is coming back from the Supreme Court of Virginia. The high court revived the contractor’s summary judgment win on claims for business conspiracy and malicious prosecution, and sent the case back for a trial on damages, including treble damages and attorney’s fees for [...]
">Writ denied in contract for inheritance Posted in Unpublished Orders on Mar 15th, 2012
The Supreme Court of Virginia has refused to hear an appeal in a case where a daughter overturned her father’s will and stands to inherit nearly $2 million under a 15-year-old contract between her parents for her benefit. A Hanover County jury last May determined the parents’ written agreement to leave their wealth to the [...]
">High court says no to ‘human factors’ expert Posted in Uncategorized, Unpublished Orders on Mar 8th, 2012
A customer who sued Best Buy after he tripped over the base of a shopping cart has lost his appeal in the Supreme Court of Virginia. Charles Stanley Hawvermale, age 79 at the time of the alleged injury, wanted a human factors engineering expert to testify that a person typically would focus on bright markings [...]
">Former judge fails to avoid defamation judgment Posted in Supreme Court Opinions on Mar 5th, 2012
Former Newport News Circuit Judge Verbena Askew struck out at the Supreme Court with a two-pronged effort to undo a $350,000 defamation judgment against her. Askew was found liable for telling newspaper reporters a former court staffer had been “institutionalized.” Askew argued that – since the newspaper never reported her comments – there were no [...]
">Plaintiff can itemize damages for a jury, court says Posted in Supreme Court Opinions on Mar 2nd, 2012
The Supreme Court has resolved a lingering question about personal injury trial practice by approving a plaintiff’s listing of possible damage amounts during closing argument. Fairfax lawyer Edward L. Weiner said he has been getting “some really good verdicts” by suggesting specific amounts for each element of damages he’s entitled to seek for his clients. [...]
">Wins for both sides in med-mal cases Posted in Supreme Court Opinions, Uncategorized on Mar 2nd, 2012
A man whose wife died after outpatient plastic surgery can keep his $1.95 million jury award in a Virginia Beach medical malpractice case tried in 2010. Thirty-three hours after the surgery on her breasts and abdomen, the 36-year-old mother of four died from aspiration pneumonia. During deliberations, the jury asked the judge if it could [...]
">Supreme Court rejects AG’s bid for climate documents Posted in Supreme Court Opinions on Mar 2nd, 2012
The Supreme Court of Virginia has thrown up a roadblock for Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli’s effort to review university research documents in search of global warming fraud. The court ruled Friday that the University of Virginia is not a “person” for purposes of the state’s Fraud Against Taxpayers Act and therefore cannot be the proper [...]
