The VLW Blog

The General Assembly unanimously elected former attorney general and legislator William C. Mims this afternoon to the Supreme Court of Virginia, effective April 1.
The election was a foregone conclusion after his appearance Monday before the House and Senate Courts of Justice Committees as the only candidate for the position. Our report on that appearance and [...]

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William C. Mims will become only the second person to serve as a Virginia legislator, an attorney general and a member of the Supreme Court of Virginia.
Any doubts that he will replace Justice Barbara M. Keenan, who was confirmed last week as a judge of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, disappeared this afternoon [...]

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The facts were different, but in two tort cases today the Supreme Court of Virginia re-emphasized that courts should not dismiss cases too early in the process.
In one, a tenant filed suit against his landlord and a management company alleging that he suffered an eye injury and that his property was destroyed because the landlord [...]

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The Supreme Court of Virginia has declined to overturn an arbitration award that included resolution of a noncompete issue.
In Cotton Creek Circles LLC v. San Luis Valley Water Co., the high court looked at a case involving ranches and water rights in Colorado. Three businesses entered into an LLC; one of members, Boyce, also owned [...]

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The Supreme Court of Virginia issued two unpublished orders today, one reaffirming the rule that you can’t get more than you sue for and the second holding that the fourth-offense drunken driving statute permits both a prison term and a fine.

In the ad damnum case, the plaintiff sought “approximately” $50,000 in damages, and the trial [...]

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A series of bills that the judicial system regards as an intrusion on its turf cleared their first legislative hurdle yesterday when they were reported out of the judicial systems subcommittee of House Courts of Justice Committee.

The legislation would eliminate the Virginia court system’s two top policy-making bodies, limit the authority of the executive secretary [...]

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The Supreme Court of Virginia will get a chance to interpret Virginia Code Sec. 33.1-386, which requires a contractor to submit any claim for damages against the Virginia Department of Transportation “at the time of the occurrence or beginning of the work upon which the claim and subsequent action is based.”

AMEC Civil LLC acknowledged that [...]

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The U.S. Supreme Court declined today to review the finding by the Supreme Court of Virginia that Virginia Beach’s noise ordinance was unconstitutional on its face.
Many localities in the state, including Virginia Beach, have reworked their noise ordinances since the Virginia court’s ruling in April. But Virginia Beach also filed a petition for a writ [...]

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The Supreme Court of Virginia handed down 18 decisions and two orders this morning. Full-text PDF copies of every case are also available on our Web site.
Here are some of the highlights:
A party can’t vouch for a decedent’s promise
It’s like a classic tale from your T&E class: Uncle dies and the aunt’s will fails to [...]

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A woman who had her case dismissed because she increased the amount sued for after taking a nonsuit filed a petition for appeal with the Supreme Court of Virginia earlier this month.
Elaine Spear alleged that she fell out of a wheelchair and was injured when a mobile lounge at Washington Dulles International Airport stopped abruptly.
She [...]

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