Couple wins defamation suit against WAVY – $1,200,000 Verdict 
By Virginia Lawyers Weekly
Published: May 28, 2012
Tags: Defamation, Federal Courts, Million-Dollar Verdicts
Plaintiffs Jack and Annabelle Walsh, a married couple, brought a defamation action against WAVY Broadcasting LLC and its parent company, LIN Television Corp.; the defendants operate television channel WAVY-10 and a television program called “10 On Your Side.” Plaintiffs are former owners and operators of Atlantic Event Rentals, a business that provided services in support [...]
Couple wins defamation case against TV station
By Sarah Rodriguez
Published: May 24, 2012
Tags: Defamation, Federal Courts, Judge Tommy E. Miller, Million-Dollar Verdicts
“On your side” consumer reports have become a staple of local television news coverage. The consumer reporter investigates complaints about a business and reports findings, often including how the station helped an angry citizen. But a 2010 report on a Hampton Roads TV station went too far, according to a federal jury in Norfolk. Earlier [...]
Bomb-shelter suit spawns defamation claim
By Deborah Elkins
Published: February 24, 2012
Tags: Defamation, Federal Courts, Judge Michael F. Urbanski
A businessman who witnessed first-hand the devastation of 9/11 from his Manhattan office has sued the companies he hired to build a million-dollar underground shelter in Augusta County to protect his family. The businessman has won the latest round in his multi-million dollar lawsuit, with a Harrisonburg U.S. District Court’s Feb. 16 dismissal of a [...]
Former HOA president’s emails were defamatory – $9,000 Verdict
By Virginia Lawyers Weekly
Published: December 26, 2011
Tags: Defamation, Fairfax County Circuit Court, Judge Leslie M. Alden
Plaintiff Sondra Cornwell filed a defamation per se case, alleging that she was defamed by four emails written and published by defendant James Ruggieri. The emails alleged that Cornwell had stolen homeowner association (HOA) funds five years earlier. Ruggieri was the president of the HOA at the time, and the emails were published in 2010. [...]
No defamation claim from draft legal complaint
By Deborah Elkins
Published: May 30, 2011
Tags: Defamation, Fairfax County Circuit Court, Federal Courts, Judge Charles E. Poston, Judge Liam O'Grady, Judge R. Terrence Ney, Norfolk Circuit Court
A lawyer who said he was defamed by a draft legal complaint that described him as “an unethical lawyer and a racist” cannot sue for defamation, says a Fairfax Circuit Court. Claims made in a lawsuit generally are protected under the absolute privilege that attaches to judicial proceedings. But the law on when that protection [...]
Former sanitation district employees say general manager defamed them – $155,000 Settlement
By Virginia Lawyers Weekly
Published: May 9, 2011
Tags: Defamation, Virginia Beach Circuit Court
Two former employees of the Hampton Roads Sanitation District alleged that they were defamed by statements the general manger of the district made to the media after disclosure that a new computer system had resulted in artificially high bills in 2008. Their claims were settled through mediation approximately two weeks before trial. In addition to [...]
Roanoke doctors duel over discovery and defamation
By Peter Vieth
Published: April 13, 2011
Tags: Defamation, Federal Courts, Judge Michael F. Urbanski
Two Roanoke-area doctors are battling their way toward trial amid allegations of hiding evidence, manipulation of financial data and witness intimidation. A Roanoke federal magistrate judge has allowed defamation claims to go to trial next month based on allegations that medical staff members told patients that a physician’s “integrity was not high” and he was [...]
Richmond judge files $1.7 defamation suit
By Peter Vieth
Published: April 7, 2011
Tags: Defamation, Judge Melvin R. Hughes Jr., Judge Timothy J. Hauler, Richmond Circuit Court
Richmond Circuit Judge Melvin R. Hughes Jr. has filed a $1.7 million defamation suit against a Richmond weekly newspaper for publishing commentary suggesting he played courtroom politics with lawyers. The suit against The Richmond Voice came after the newspaper published editorial comments about a different defamation suit. Hughes presided over that case, and a jury [...]
Fired head of Moose lodge wins $275K
By Alan Cooper
Published: March 30, 2011
Tags: Defamation, Hanover County Circuit Court, Judge J. Overton Harris
Carl Wayne Koegler was suspended from his job as administrator of the Richmond East Moose Lodge in Mechanicsville in June 2008 and word circulated that $500,000 was missing. Koegler insisted he had done nothing wrong. In fact, he said the lodge’s bookkeeping improved on his watch, although he had warned the lodge’s board it was [...]
Moose Lodge administrator contends he was falsely accused of theft – $275,000 Verdict
By Virginia Lawyers Weekly
Published: March 28, 2011
Tags: Defamation, Hanover County Circuit Court, Judge J. Overton Harris
The plaintiff, Carl Wayne Koegler, was the administrator for Richmond East Moose Lodge. In May 2008 the lodge installed Keith Williams as the governor. In late June there was a convention held by Moose International in Las Vegas, and plaintiff attended the convention. The day after plaintiff left, Williams went to the office and requested [...]
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