Trust manager sues for fees, gets hit for $13M

Property manager sued using rare ‘land trust’ law – Defense Verdict

By Virginia Lawyers Weekly
Published: June 10, 2013
Tags: Alexandria Circuit Court, Contract, Judge Nolan B. Dawkins, Real Estate

After an eight-day trial, an Alexandria jury awarded a defense verdict in a case involving a rare legal instrument known as a “land trust.” The essence of a land trust is that title to the property is held by a designated trustee, but actual control is left in the hands of beneficiaries who are not [...]

Rare land trust at heart of court battle

By Correy E. Stephenson
Published: June 6, 2013
Tags: Alexandria Circuit Court, Million-Dollar Defense Verdicts, Real Estate, Wills & Trusts

During Prohibition, a land trust made perfect sense. The unusual form of property ownership allows one or more owners to place their property in trust, with a trustee managing day-to-day operations. The twist: The true owners, whose identity remains confidential, actually retain the power to direct the trustee, manage the property and draw income from [...]

Mandatory attorney’s fees awarded in precedent-setting VFATA case – $243,684 Verdict

By Virginia Lawyers Weekly
Published: June 3, 2013
Tags: Alexandria Circuit Court, Fraud

On March 8, 2013, a jury ruled in favor of an architect fired by the City of Alexandria, in the first case tried under the Virginia Fraud Against Taxpayers Act’s anti-retaliation provisions, Va. Code 8.01-216.8 et seq. Plaintiff’s petition for an award of attorney’s fees and costs was granted. The total judgment entered was $243,684.62, [...]

Plaintiff prevails in first case brought under amended VFATA – $208,100 Verdict

By Virginia Lawyers Weekly
Published: April 22, 2013
Tags: Alexandria Circuit Court, Employment

Plaintiff is a licensed architect with 35 years of experience in construction management and architecture. He was hired in January 2008 by the City of Alexandria to be the senior project manager for the new Alexandria police facility. The “APF” was and is the second-largest construction project ever undertaken by the city, with a total [...]

Building a precedent

By Peter Vieth
Published: April 1, 2013
Tags: Alexandria Circuit Court, Judge James C. Clark

An architect fired by the city of Alexandria has won the first case under a new whistleblower law that allows state and local government workers to sue for retaliatory job actions under the Virginia Fraud Against Taxpayers Act. Attorney Zachary A. Kitts of Fairfax is using the law, adopted in 2011, to seek more than [...]

Website must identify ‘John Doe’ posters

By Deborah Elkins
Published: December 3, 2012
Tags: Alexandria Circuit Court, Defamation, Judge James C. Clark, Social Media, Supreme Court of Virginia News

An Alexandria Circuit Court says a Virginia carpet cleaning business may subpoena information on persons who posted anonymous complaints about the business on Yelp.com, a California-based social networking site. The court said it would enforce a subpoena served by the Virginia business on Yelp’s registered agent in Virginia, asking for information about three “John Doe” [...]

Getting to the jury on ‘capacity’ for will

By Peter Vieth
Published: November 14, 2012
Tags: Alexandria Circuit Court, Justice Cleo E. Powell, Justice Cynthia D. Kinser, Justice Donald W. Lemons, Justice Elizabeth A. McClanahan, Justice LeRoy F. Millette Jr., Justice S. Bernard Goodwyn, Justice William C. Mims, Supreme Court of Virginia News, Wills & Trusts

Call it a finger on the scale of justice. The law sometimes gives an advantage to one side in a lawsuit, allowing a legal “presumption” about some key fact in the case. Presumptions can be overcome, but how much weight it takes, who gets to make the call, and what happens afterward have been open [...]

89-year-old killed in car crash had been healthy, active for her age – $525,000 Settlement

By Virginia Lawyers Weekly
Published: July 16, 2012
Tags: Alexandria Circuit Court, Wrongful Death

Decedent, an 89-year-old woman, was proceeding through an intersection on a green light. The defendant, a 90-year-old woman, traveling in the opposite direction, failed to yield and made a left turn immediately in front of decedent’ s car. The two vehicles collided. The defendant pled guilty to failure to pay full time and attention. The [...]

Plaintiff’s damages claims contradicted his bankruptcy petition – Summary judgment granted

By Virginia Lawyers Weekly
Published: April 30, 2012
Tags: Alexandria Circuit Court, Legal Malpractice

Defendant attorney represented plaintiff husband in divorce and custody proceedings from 2007 to 2011, which concluded with the wife being awarded full custody of the minor child, and limited visitation rights for the husband. Plaintiff husband sued his attorney, alleging that, because of the defendant’s malpractice: 1. Plaintiff lost custody of his child and as [...]