The VLW Blog

The weather was cool but the fall colors were at their peak as a gaggle of local government attorneys hit the streets of Roanoke Friday for a motorcycle tour of the Piedmont.
The motorcycle tour was organized by Fredericksburg city attorney Kathleen Dooley and Roanoke’s Jim Guynn as part of a conference of the Local Government [...]

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A Fairfax County judge dismissed misdemeanor charges against two bartenders who once faced felony counts for their “fire breathing” trick at a Herndon tavern.
The Fairfax County fire marshall arrested the pair in July after witnessing them perform the “flaming bartender” trick, reports the Fairfax Times. The feat involved spitting high-proof alcohol onto a flame.
They [...]

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Although the age at which a child becomes capable of negligence was brought into question, a N.Y. judge has ruled that a lawsuit can proceed against a 4-year-old.
According to The New York Times, 4-year-old Juliet was racing her bicycle against another child, when the pair struck an elderly woman. The 87-year-old suffered a broken [...]

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Last winter, it snowed in Alexandria. I mean, it really snowed. When snow plows were finally able to clear the streets, they piled snow 10 feet high on the sidewalks, even higher in area parking lots. “Snowmageddon,” they called it.
Courts closed, too. But an Alexandria federal court has just ruled that a slip-and-fall plaintiff [...]

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The Greater Richmond Bar Foundation is just one of the Richmond-area groups that has developed programs to celebrate National Pro Bono Week, from Oct. 24 through Oct. 30, that show lawyers how to lend a hand.
Even if you’ve already had lunch, it’s not too late to earn two hours of free CLE credit today. From [...]

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Virginia Lawyers Weekly held its fifth annual Leaders in the Law reception and awards ceremony on Oct. 21, 2010. Click here to see a slideshow of photos from the event.

If you attended the reception and have photos you would like to share, please send them to Alan Cooper at alan.cooper@valawyersmedia.com.

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When a general contractor failed to pay subcontractors on a retail construction project, the Stafford County Commonwealth’s Attorney brought the contractor up on criminal fraud charges.
Facing an imminent jury trial, the contractor now has agreed to pay out a total of  $400,000 to resolve the case, according to The Free Lance-Star.
Contractors will get only about [...]

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U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, the University of Richmond’s Orator-in-Residence this year, will speak at the Jepson Alumni Center at noon on Nov. 19.
His topic will be “Do Words Matter?” and he will sign copies of a book he co-wrote recently with Bryan Garner, “Marking Your Case: the Art of Persuading Judges.”
Details about tickets [...]

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An officer who stopped a man for speeding ended up wrongfully arresting and jailing the man’s entire family, mostly for obstruction of justice, according to a lawsuit targeting the police in Saltville.
The lawsuit filed by Larry Jackson describes an officer losing his temper at the Jacksons’ home, arresting one family member after another as they [...]

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When it comes to representing a diverse clientele, cultural differences and styles of communication come into play.
Richmond lawyer Charles M. Allen has a good handle on what it takes to represent a range of clients. Allen started out doing criminal law and now does intellectual property work. Across the 28 years he’s been practicing, he [...]

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