Michigan Debt Suit Prompts FDCPA Claim

Plaintiff Invited ‘Missing Witness’ Instruction

By Deborah Elkins
Published: February 14, 2013
Tags: Judge David J. Novak, Negligence, U.S. District Court - Eastern District

In plaintiff motorcyclist’s unsuccessful personal injury suit against a truck driver, the trial court did not err in giving a “missing witness” instruction when plaintiff failed to appear at trial after having been named on the witness list, and the magistrate judge for the Richmond U.S. District Court denies plaintiff’s Rule 59 motion for a [...]

Vehicle Swerve Supported Stop for Texting

By Deborah Elkins
Published: February 4, 2013
Tags: Judge David J. Novak, Traffic Offenses, U.S. District Court - Eastern District

A police officer’s belief that defendant was texting while driving, a secondary offense in Virginia, did not prevent the officer from stopping defendant after he swerved toward the officer’s car in the adjacent lane, which provided cause to stop for reckless driving; the stop was legal and the Richmond U.S. District Court Magistrate Judge denies [...]

No Claim from Emergency Custody Order

By Deborah Elkins
Published: January 7, 2013
Tags: Civil Rights, Judge David J. Novak, U.S. District Court - Eastern District

A plaintiff who was taken into custody and subjected to a mental health evaluation Emergency Custody Order (ECO) issued by a magistrate on the sworn testimony of plaintiff’s wife, cannot sue defendants, the officers who took him into custody and the professional who conducted the mental health evaluation, for violation of his constitutional rights; the [...]

Joint Venture ‘Fraud’ Claim Dismissed

By Deborah Elkins
Published: October 15, 2012
Tags: Intellectual Property, Judge David J. Novak, Judge Robert E. Payne, U.S. District Court - Eastern District

A company that consulted on regulatory compliance for the pharmaceutical industry that had a joint venture with a software company to develop and market compliance software can sue the software company for a declaratory judgment that it’s part-owner of the copyright for the software that was developed and for breach of contract, but the Richmond [...]

Inventor keeps rights under form contract

By Deborah Elkins
Published: August 24, 2012
Tags: Contract, Federal Courts, Judge David J. Novak, Judge Dennis Dohnal

A high-flying business deal to give airplane passengers in-flight Internet has crash-landed, winding up in Richmond federal court. It’s an oft-told tale, the court said: A business deal, all “optimism and cooperation” at the outset, is soured by funding problems and dissolves into litigation. This deal was a joint venture between inventor Michael Leabman and [...]

Jurisdiction Approved in Veil-Piercing Case

By Deborah Elkins
Published: August 22, 2012
Tags: Civil Procedure, Judge David J. Novak, Judge Robert E. Payne, U.S. District Court - Eastern District

A Richmond U.S. District Court accepts the magistrate judge’s recommendation and refuses to dismiss this contract action seeking to pierce the corporate veil of defendant affiliated companies, who allegedly purchased and shared plaintiff’s software licenses. Plaintiff Brainware Inc. sued defendant Scan-Optics Ltd. alleging breach of contract through failure to make payments in a series of [...]

Excavation Company Can Sue Over Cable Damage

By Deborah Elkins
Published: July 5, 2012
Tags: Judge David J. Novak, Negligence, U.S. District Court - Eastern District

A Richmond U.S. District Court magistrate judge says an excavation company that damaged plaintiff Level 3 Communications’ fiber optic cables may bring a third-party action for breach of contract, equitable indemnity and contribution against Accumark Inc., who allegedly incorrectly identified the location and depth of the cables. In Virginia, if a defendant is guilty of [...]

Texas Company Faces Va. Suit Over Boiler

By Deborah Elkins
Published: June 20, 2012
Tags: Civil Procedure, Judge David J. Novak, U.S. District Court - Eastern District

A Richmond U.S. District Court has personal jurisdiction over a Texas engineering company that has had multiple contracts with a Virginia manufacturer for the sale of custom boilers, and the Texas company must defend the manufacturer’s contract claim for an unpaid bill of nearly $100,000; the defendant purposefully availed itself of the Virginia legal system [...]

No Consumer Claims on Ford Truck

By Deborah Elkins
Published: April 17, 2012
Tags: Consumer Protection, Judge David J. Novak, U.S. District Court - Eastern District

A consumer’s Ford 650 Series truck that has suffered mechanical malfunctions is not a “consumer product” under the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act or a “motor vehicle” under the Virginia Lemon Law, and a Richmond U.S. District Court magistrate judge awards summary judgment to defendant Ford Motor Company. Plaintiff Terry Eversole bought a new 2008 Ford F650 [...]