The VLW Blog

The Citizens Advisory Committee for the Albemarle-Charlottesville Public Defender Office will present the 2013 Clarence Earl Gideon Award to Charlottesville Circuit Judge Edward Hogshire. The award will be presented for the first time in 2013, in the 50th anniversary year of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in the case of Gideon v. Wainwright, finding that [...]

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Chesterfield County Deputy County Attorney Stylian “Stel” Parthemos has been honored by the Local Government Attorneys of Virginia, Inc. with the 2013 Cherin Award for Outstanding Deputy or Assistant Local Government Attorney, presented at the association’s recent spring conference in Roanoke. Parthemos has been with the county attorney’s office since 1987; he became deputy county [...]

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Dozens of law firms, legal departments, government offices, and law schools joined together to raise more than 1.5 million pounds of food for Virginia’s hungry during the seventh annual Legal Food Frenzy in Virginia. The results of the two-week drive in April brought the cumulative seven-year total raised to the equivalent of more than 10 [...]

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A well-known Tysons Corner law firm picked up five new attorneys at the beginning of the 2013. Two partners and three associates from the Falls Church firm of Kasimer & Annino PC joined offices with Rees Broome PC. The firm, which will continue to operate under the Rees Broome name, now has 42 attorneys in [...]

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A former staffer at a Norfolk law firm received both a scolding and a year behind bars for embezzling more than $100,000 from the firm. Kristi Rind, 34, had worked for Warren & Associates for 12 years as an assistant, paralegal and bookkeeper, reports The Virginian-Pilot. “She became a very trusted and loyal employee,” said [...]

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A Hampton Roads law firm violated ethics rules when it simultaneously represented two clients who were in adverse legal positions. A Norfolk U.S. District Court said it found no prejudice in the current case and would not disqualify the firm, but would refer the matter to the Virginia State Bar. Montagna Klein Camden LLP specializes [...]

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Richmond lawyer Steven D. Benjamin has taken the helm of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers. Taking office Saturday as the 2012-13 president of NACDL at the group’s San Francisco meeting, Benjamin pledged to promote the use of scientific evidence on behalf of the accused. Benjamin said defense lawyers have learned to challenge the [...]

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A Norfolk criminal defense attorney was arrested days after he allegedly yelled accusations against his client’s co-defendant in a courtroom hallway. Herman C. Smith III is being held without bond in the Norfolk City Jail on a felony obstruction of justice charge, reports The Virginian-Pilot. The incident occurred on Tuesday after a preliminary hearing in [...]

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And in more news from the department of “it’s tough all over,” compensation for corporate counsel also has dropped, according to a new survey released by AmLaw’s Corporate Counsel. Base pay has been relatively stable, the survey reports, dropping slightly to an average of $611,411 for GCs. But stock awards and bonuses are down. The [...]

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Fewer jobs at the largest law firms mean salary statistics for new lawyers continue their depressing trend. The average salary for 2011 law school graduates is 6.5 percent lower than that for the previous class, according to NALP – the Association for Legal Career Professionals. The figures for new private practice lawyers are more startling. [...]

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