The VLW Blog

Lloyd Coleman Sullenberger of Orange, former judge of the 16th Circuit, passed away Wednesday. He was 68.
Judge Sullenberger was a graduate of the University of Virginia, according to his obituary in The News Leader. He served in the U.S. Coast Guard and earned his law degree from the College of William & Mary. [...]

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Former Richmond public defender John B. Boatwright III died this past Monday after an illness. He was 56.
Mr. Boatwright was a 1981 graduate of the University of Virginia law school. He worked in private practice until 2002, when he became the first regional capital-murder defense attorney in the state.
“John was a fierce advocate. He was [...]

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Former Richmond city attorney Conard B. Mattox Jr. died Saturday. He was 85.
According to the Richmond Times-Dispatch, Mr. Mattox spent five years as a U.S. Army Air Forces pilot in World War II. Afterwards, he earned bachelor’s and master’s and law degrees from the University of Richmond.
He was named Richmond’s city attorney in 1967, and served until his retirement [...]

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Alexander “Sandy” Wellford, a retired Richmond attorney and First Amendment expert, died Wednesday at his home in Glen Allen. He was 78
Mr. Wellford, a partner at what is now Christian& Barton LLP for more than 40 years, played a key role in Richmond Newspapers Inc. v. Virginia, the 1980 U.S. Supreme Court case that decided [...]

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Recently retired York/Poquoson Circuit Judge N. Prentis Smiley passed away on Christmas day after a lengthy battle with cancer. He was 70.
A graduate of Lynchburg College and the College of William & Mary law school, Judge Smiley was in private practice for nearly 30 years before being appointed circuit judge in 1995. He ended his [...]

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William Courtney King Jr., a civic leader and long-time Roanoke attorney, died this past Sunday. He was 85.
Mr. King served in the United States Army Air Corps during World War II. After working in New York City, he practiced law in the City of Roanoke for approximately 40 years.
Mr. King was a past president of [...]

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Robert E. Shepherd Jr. (right), a longtime professor at the University of Richmond law school and an expert on juvenile law, died last night, according to a report from UR Law Dean John G. Douglass. Prof. Shepherd was 71.
A graduate of Washington and Lee University and its law school, Prof. Shepherd entered the Army JAG [...]

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Williamsburg attorney Alvin P. Anderson died Friday, Nov. 28, at age 60.
Mr. Anderson was a member of the executive committee at the law firm of Kaufman & Canoles, where chairman William R. Van Buren III said that he will be greatly missed.  “Alvin was a critical member of our leadership team and a respected and [...]

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Ed Lindsley of Virginia Beach died last week, leaving a colorful legacy of opportunistic land acquisition. He was 84. 
Apparently relying on a legal education and years of real estate experience, Mr. Lindsley (right) would pore over land records looking for mistakes and oversights that he could exploit.  In 1986, the city of Virginia Beach paid [...]

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Former delegate and former Virginia Bar Association president George Rogers Clark Stuart of Abingdon died Saturday at 83.  According to his obituary in the Bristol Herald Courier, Mr. Stuart served in decisive Army action in World War II.  He practiced for 40 years with the firm now known as PennStuart. We are told that his funeral [...]

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