The VLW Blog

The U.S. Supreme Court has determined not to rule on an appeal from Richmond-based cigarette maker Philip Morris USA, which hoped to overturn a $79.5-million verdict in favor of a Oregon widow.
The decision leaves in place a ruling of the Oregon Supreme Court upholding the award for Mayola Williams.  Williams contended that Philip Morris should [...]

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The Virginia Judicial Council adopted today the proposed revision of the rules of appellate procedure essentially as recommended by a 27-member committee headed by Supreme Court Justice Donald W. Lemons.
The revisions to Part 5 of the Supreme Court and Part 5A of the Virginia Court of Appeals now go to the Supreme Court, which will [...]

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Rocky Mount lawyer Carolyn Furrow cuts through the jargon to offer legal advice for radio listeners in Franklin County.
In each half-hour of “Law Talk,” she fields listeners’ questions about legal issues of all sorts, reports The Roanoke Times, clarifying points of law to those unfamiliar with legalese.
The show airs at 9:15 a.m. each Wednesday on [...]

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A former assistant to Washington County Circuit Judge Randall Lowe, who pleaded guilty in 2007 to stealing more than $16,000 from the judge’s office, now has been indicted on charges of stealing from a law firm.
Anna Laura Howell, 43, is accused in a two-count federal indictment with money laundering and mail fraud.  Neither the federal [...]

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The U.S. Supreme Court won’t review the dismissal of the felony spam convictions of Jeremy Jaynes.
The Supreme Court of Virginia had upheld his convictions and nine-year prison term on a 4-3 vote in February 2008 but reversed them unanimously in September.
Considered to be among the top 10 spammers at the world at the time [...]

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Gov. Tim Kaine is proposing amendments to legislation that would make sure that the state gets $125 million in unemployment money from the federal stimulus package.
The state already has received $62.5 million as part of the unemployment modernization program regulated by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, but state law needs to be changed to [...]

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Del. Franklin P. Hall, D-Richmond, announced his retirement today after 34 years in the General Assembly, and Gov. Timothy M. Kaine promptly appointed him to the Virginia Alcoholic Beverage Control Commission.
Hall, 70, served as House minority leader from 2002-2008, and is the senior member of the Rules, Joint House and Senate Rules and Counties, cities [...]

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John V. Cogbill III has told the Richmond-area legislative delegation that he will not accept his appointment to the circuit court bench in Chesterfield and Colonial Heights.
Cogbill is managing partner of McGuireWoods’ Richmond office and very highly regarded for his expertise in land use and other real estate matters. He’s also a member of a [...]

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Gov. Tim Kaine has vetoed a handful of bills from this year’s General Assembly session aimed at increasing the scope of Virginia’s death penalty.  In particular, the governor has refused to sign legislation that would modify Virginia’s “triggerman” rule to make accessories and principals in the second degree eligible for the death penalty in certain [...]

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Richmond attorney Tony Troy claims a circuit judge erred when he slashed Troy’s attorney fee request in an action related to the Gloucester County government battles.  Troy is asking the Supreme Court of Virginia to review the decision to award him only a third of his claimed fees and costs in a Freedom of Information [...]

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