The VLW Blog

College of William & Mary law dean Davison M. Douglas says the school’s drop on the U.S. News & World Report list this year resulted primarily from the number of unemployed graduates. The W&M law school fell from 27th to a tie for 35th in the U.S. News rankings. Douglas said the drop is tied [...]

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Two Virginia federal courthouses are marked for possible closing under a federal judiciary study. The federal courthouses in Newport News and Big Stone Gap are on a list of lesser used courthouses circulated among federal judges for review and comment, according to the Associated Press. The comments are expected to be considered by a committee [...]

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A Hampton Roads woman who brought a bad-faith claim against her insurance company has won payment of her medical bills, along with attorney’s fees and $4,000 in punitives. According to a Verdicts & Settlements Report filed by Virginia Beach lawyer Sandra L. Sampson, a woman hurt in a car wreck incurred more than $24,000 in [...]

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It’s more than a book, and more than a movie. “To Kill a Mockingbird” is an institution of American culture. New proof arrived last week. Harper Lee’s 1960 novel and the 1962 movie remain a touchstone for believers in the ideal – and the “living, working reality” – of the American criminal justice system. The [...]

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A prominent Roanoke lawyer was pronounced dead after a three-car wreck Sunday night on a narrow road north of Salem. Richard Lee Lawrence, 74, a well-known criminal lawyer in Roanoke, was reported killed in a crash on U.S. Route 311. Police said his Jeep crossed the center line and struck an oncoming vehicle head-on. A [...]

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A group of 34 former judges, prosecutors and law enforcement officials is urging a federal appeals court to reject the state’s effort to reinstate the capital murder conviction of Justin Wolfe. Wolfe was convicted in Prince William County of hiring a man to kill a rival drug dealer in 2002. The evidence against him came [...]

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A Friday opinion from the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals revives the gender discrimination claim of a former Chesterfield County human resources director. Karla Gerner sued the county for $1.1 million contending her severance package was meager compared to “sweetheart deals” offered to similarly situated male counterparts. Richmond federal Judge Henry Hudson dismissed the [...]

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A home buyer who thought he was getting a “mother-in-law apartment” is suing the seller and a realty company for false advertising. Darrell Brown and his wife bought the Sterling, Va., home in 2009 from Michael Labelle, according to a Fairfax Circuit Court opinion in Brown v. Labelle. Labelle was both owner and listing agent [...]

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A woman who worked at a Roanoke packaging plant gets another chance to recover on her Title VII sexual harassment claim. Her suit alleged a supervising male employee stalked her, forced her to have sex with him in order to avoid disciplinary action and told coworkers she was a “whore” and had a sexually transmitted [...]

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Four Virginia law schools can point with pride to advancements in the latest rankings from U.S. & World Report, and Washington & Lee has moved ahead of William & Mary on the magazine’s list. Law schools at the University of Richmond, Washington & Lee University, the University of Virginia and George Mason University all moved [...]

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