Henrico County Circuit Court | Virginia Lawyers Weekly

Intersection collision kills father and son in Henrico – $3,000,000 Verdict

By Virginia Lawyers Weekly
Published: April 18, 2011
Tags: Henrico County Circuit Court, Judge Lee A. Harris Jr., Million-Dollar Verdicts, Wrongful Death

The 52-year-old decedent was involved in a two-vehicle collision on Laburnum Avenue in Henrico County on March 3, 2009.
Shortly before trial, the defendant admitted liability. At a failed mediation, the only offer was $700,000. There were no additional negotiations.
During closing argument, defense counsel told the jury his client felt that $1,000,000 would be full compensation [...]

Juries defy cliche of anti-immigrant bias

By Alan Cooper
Published: April 15, 2011
Tags: Henrico County Circuit Court, Immigration, Medical Malpractice, Million-Dollar Verdicts, Prince William Circuit Court, Wrongful Death

Your plaintiff is the family of a Mexican national from North Carolina, killed in an auto accident, and you’re stuck with a Virginia jurisdiction with a reputation for conservative jurors.
If those circumstances sound daunting, consider a second case.
Your 5 1/2-year-old plaintiff with a severe brachial plexus injury is the son of a Mexican woman [...]

Umbrella becomes UIM: Man gets full policy limits

By Peter Vieth
Published: April 6, 2011
Tags: Henrico County Circuit Court, Insurance, Judge Gary Hicks, Personal Injury

An injured motor vehicle passenger learned last November that he could get underinsured motorist coverage from his umbrella liability policy in a rare policy interpretation. This month he learned how much he could recover: he gets to tap the full limits of the umbrella policy, under a ruling from a Henrico County circuit judge.
The decision [...]

Recusal can be a touchy moment for a lawyer

By Alan Cooper
Published: February 28, 2011
Tags: Colonial Heights Circuit Court, Fairfax County Circuit Court, General District Courts, Henrico County Circuit Court, Judge Jane Marum Roush, Judge Lee A. Harris Jr., Judge Timothy J. Hauler, Judge William N. Alexander II, Justice Elizabeth B. Lacy, Justice S. Bernard Goodwyn, Supreme Court of Virginia News, Virginia Court of Appeals News

It can be a ticklish and touchy moment for a lawyer: the judge in a case has a conflict and needs to pass the file to a colleague. But whether, and how, to ask a judge to recuse herself can be a major source of heartburn.
As it turns out, judges are much more likely to [...]

Custody evaluations: Does court-appointed expert get the last word?

By Deborah Elkins
Published: January 31, 2011
Tags: Domestic Relations, Henrico County Circuit Court, Virginia Court of Appeals News

When a lawyer in a custody case gets an “absolutely killing” report from a court-appointed evaluator, there are two options.
First, you can “surrender,” family law practitioner Michael S. Ewing said at the Henrico County Bar Association’s Bench-Bar program on Jan. 26. And that’s “often the best option,” he said.
But you don’t have to wave [...]

Vehicle hits pedestrian at intersection – Defense Verdict

By Virginia Lawyers Weekly
Published: December 27, 2010
Tags: Henrico County Circuit Court, Judge Gary Hicks

Plaintiff was crossing the street at night in a dimly lit area with no traffic controls when he was struck by defendant’s vehicle. There was a better lit and traffic light controlled intersection 200 feet away.
Plaintiff was wearing dark clothes. Plaintiff looked left, saw headlights approaching, looked right, and looked left again and saw headlights [...]

Brain injury ends career of government contractor – $4,300,000 Settlement

By Virginia Lawyers Weekly
Published: December 27, 2010
Tags: Henrico County Circuit Court, Million-Dollar Settlements

Plaintiff was injured in a motor vehicle accident. Liability was vigorously disputed. Plaintiff suffered a severe traumatic brain injury. He underwent a partial frontal lobectomy after four weeks in a medically induced coma. The plaintiff’s personality and cognitive abilities were greatly affected by the accident. The plaintiff was a 20-year [...]

Driver’s umbrella policy provides UIM coverage

By Peter Vieth
Published: November 19, 2010
Tags: Henrico County Circuit Court, Insurance, Judge Gary Hicks

An injured motorist gets the rare benefit of underinsured motorist coverage from his $2-million umbrella policy under a recent opinion from a Henrico County judge.
The unusual coverage decision is based on wording in an endorsement to the UIM policy.
The case is Auto-Owners Insurance Company v. Morris, VLW 010-8-213. The opinion is by Henrico County Circuit [...]

Case turns on delay in reporting knee injury from crash – $225,000 Verdict

By Virginia Lawyers Weekly
Published: November 8, 2010
Tags: Henrico County Circuit Court, Judge Daniel T. Balfour, Personal Injury

Plaintiff was involved in a motor vehicle accident on Dec. 15, 2008. She was transported from the scene to the emergency room of St. Mary’s Hospital with complaints of facial burns from the air bag deployment and head, neck, and shoulder discomfort. She did not complain about a right knee injury.
Four days after the accident, [...]

Domestic Relations – Equitable Distribution – Gifts To Couple

By Deborah Elkins
Published: July 16, 2010
Tags: Domestic Relations, Henrico County Circuit Court, Judge Daniel T. Balfour, Virginia Circuit Courts

Although husband worked after the marriage at an annual income of $120,000, while wife was not employed outside the home and managed the couple’s household and finances, wife’s father provided ongoing financial support to the couple of over $1.8 million, including child support payments to husband’s children from a prior marriage, and the Henrico County [...]

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