The VLW Blog

Read it and weep if you’re a plaintiff’s trial attorney—or take credit if you’re a Republican attorney general.
Directorship magazine has ranked Virginia as having the second-best liability climate in the country for business. Nebraska ranked first.
The magazine says Virginia has the second lowest insurance loss ratio and labels the Supreme Court of Virginia as a [...]

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Richmond lawyer Everette G. “Buddy” Allen and his wife Ann have given gifts totaling $2.6 million to Randolph-Macon College.
Allen attended the Ashland school on several scholarships, earning his degree, Phi Beta Kappa, in 1962. He played on the college basketball, baseball and football teams; Allen was inducted into the R-MC Athletic Hall of Fame [...]

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Retired Louisa County Circuit Judge Harold H. Purcell died July 14 at the age of 87.
Judge Purcell served in both the House of Delegates and the Senate before he went on the bench in 1966. In 1958, he patroned the bill that established Virginia’s uninsured motorist laws. When he retired from the bench in 1979, [...]

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McLean lawyer Corinne Magee has a legal argument that the new civil remedial fees for abusive drivers are unconstitutional, and she isn’t keeping it a secret.
She has made it available to her colleagues in the Virginia Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers — and to Virginia Lawyers Weekly. Click here for a copy of her draft [...]

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A Newport News federal district judge yesterday denied an ex parte discovery motion filed by music companies seeking to discover the names of seven Internet users at The College of William and Mary the companies allege violated copyright laws by Internet file-sharing.
The group of plaintiff music companies includes BMG Music, Elektra Entertainment, Arista Records, Sony [...]

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An early test of the constitutionality of Virginia’s civil remedial fees for abusive drivers could come as early as July 24 in Henrico General District Court.
Attorneys Craig Cooley and Esther Windmueller have filed a writ of prohibition seeking to bar the court clerk from collecting the fees because they are a violation of equal protection. [...]

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Warsaw lawyer Thomas D. Taylor died of cancer July 6. He was 72.
Mr. Taylor was the first black lawyer in the town, according to his family, and he served Warsaw and Richmond County for more than 30 years, they said.
The Richmond Times-Dispatch has the story.

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Retired Suffolk lawyer Herman T. Benn passed away on June 29 at the age of 95. in 1962 Mr. Benn won a case in which the U.S. Supreme Court declared segregation of courtrooms to be unconstitutional.
The Suffolk News-Herald has the story.

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Roanoke business lawyer Eugene E. Derryberry died on July 5 after a long battle with prostate cancer. He was 64. Colleagues remembered him as a mentor who loved teaching the younger lawyers at his firm, Gentry Locke Rakes and Moore.
The Roanoke Times has the story.

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Elder law is a growing field of practice, and we all know why. What lawyers don’t always know is how to balance the different hats they may have to wear when serving elderly or incapacitated clients.
A new Fairfax case highlights one issue of concern: Should a lawyer appointed as a guardian and conservator draft the [...]

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