The VLW Blog

Two Richmond-area lawyers say their firm is getting stiffed by Donald Trump and they want out of a lawsuit in Charlottesville federal court. A Trump spokesperson blames the dispute on shoddy work by the Virginia lawyers.
The lawyers from Cook, Heyward, Lee, Hopper & Feehan PC of Glen Allen are asking a federal judge to let [...]

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A bank’s effort to move Donald Trump from the head of line for buyers of the Kluge mansion in Albemarle County remains alive in federal court.
U.S. District Judge Norman Moon denied Trump’s motion to dismiss the suit filed by a Bank of America affiliate. The bank disputes Trump’s claim to a right of first refusal [...]

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The Bank of America is asking a federal judge to block Donald Trump’s claimed right-of-first-refusal to buy the embattled Albemarle House mansion near Charlottesville.
Trump owns the front yard and other nearby properties formerly controlled by heiress Patricia Kluge, who has given up millions in assets after declaring bankruptcy in June.
Trump says his claimed right of [...]

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Troubles abound for those accused of trying to make a quick buck off the foreclosure crisis.
Virginia AG Ken Cuccinelli has announced a third settlement with a company that allegedly charged illegal advance fees for “foreclosure rescue” services. A Virginia Beach firm has agreed to refund $7,800 to five customers and to pay $5,000 to the [...]

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Bank of America has reached a deal to end a lawsuit by scores of investors who claimed they lost millions purchasing overvalued Carolina waterfront property.
The terms of the settlement were not disclosed. The deal essentially ends a federal lawsuit that targeted the bank for its role in financing real estate purchases from the Woodbridge-based Total [...]

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Whether a private plaintiff may sue a surety under Virginia’s CRESPA statute is a question that was certified today to the Supreme Court of Virginia by the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
Several Virginia state and federal courts that have considered the question have found no private right of action under Virginia’s Consumer Real Estate [...]

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It’s not just a refrain from a Talking Heads song. It’s also the latest account of what the law says about how foreclosure works in Virginia. 
In March, we reported on a legal challenge to how foreclosures are conducted in Virginia, in the wake of the housing market collapse.
Alexandria lawyer Chris Brown argued in Horvath v. [...]

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Legislation is making its way through the General Assembly to make it easier for developers to fight local governments that seek to extract cash proffers before completion of new construction projects.
It’s the latest development in a debate over the retroactive effect of a 2010 statute that forbids local governments from collecting early cash proffers [...]

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The effort to require recordation of mortgage assignments in court records is finally dead.
Sen. Chap Petersen, D-Fairfax, managed to resurrect his proposal, Senate Bill 838, that would have required the recordation of mortgage assignments in court records yesterday.
The bill had been voted down in subcommittee, 4-3, but the full Senate Courts Committee passed it 9-5. [...]

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So much for foreclosure reform.
All that appears to be left of a slew of bills in the House and Senate is SB 837, which would create a civil cause of action against a person who knowingly uses a false document in support of foreclosure.
That bill, with Chap Petersen, D-Fairfax, as patron, survived after substantial amendment [...]

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