The Supreme Court of Virginia adopts today a five-part test for determining whether an inadvertent disclosure of a document covered by the attorney-client privilege waives the privilege. The issue in Walton v. Mid-Atlantic Spine Specialists PC arose after a letter from an orthopedic surgeon to his attorney was copied by a company the surgeon’s practice [...]
">Read Full Post »
Today’s crop of 18 opinions from the Supreme Court of Virginia brings additional evidence that lawyers still struggle to follow the rules about proper parties in civil actions. In Johnson v. Hart, the beneficiary of a will was dissatisfied with the work of the attorney who served as executor of the will. When she sued [...]
">Read Full Post »
When arriving at an equitable distribution of a couple’s property, it’s only logical to start with the presumption that assets and debts acquired or incurred during the marriage are marital rather than individual, right? Logical perhaps, but the Supreme Court of Virginia says today that Virginia Code § 20-107.3 creates the presumption that assets are [...]
">Read Full Post »
For those of you who suspect that the Supreme Court of Virginia has never seen an easement dispute that it didn’t think merited its attention, we have three more examples today. One, Hafner v. Hansen, involves what seems to be the court’s all-time favorite topic, an easement by prescription, or what a property owner hoped [...]
">Read Full Post »
The Supreme Court of Virginia split 4-3 today on the issue of just what constitutes a cemetery. In a case from Rockingham County, the lower court and the Supreme Court majority held that a site can’t be a cemetery without the burial of a dead body. The circumstances in Shilling v. Baker suggest that’s much [...]
">Read Full Post »
The Supreme Court of Virginia has declined to overturn an arbitration award that included resolution of a noncompete issue. In Cotton Creek Circles LLC v. San Luis Valley Water Co., the high court looked at a case involving ranches and water rights in Colorado. Three businesses entered into an LLC; one of members, Boyce, also [...]
">Read Full Post »
The facts were different, but in two tort cases today the Supreme Court of Virginia re-emphasized that courts should not dismiss cases too early in the process. In one, a tenant filed suit against his landlord and a management company alleging that he suffered an eye injury and that his property was destroyed because the [...]
">Read Full Post »
The Supreme Court of Virginia handed down 18 decisions and two orders this morning. Full-text PDF copies of every case are also available on our Web site. Here are some of the highlights: A party can’t vouch for a decedent’s promise It’s like a classic tale from your T&E class: Uncle dies and the aunt’s [...]
">Read Full Post »
