Virginia Lawyers Weekly VA Lawyers Weekly

A manufacturer stated a claim for defamation against the project-management company for whom it had provided turbines, based on oblique comments about “quality control” made by the company’s CEO on its shareholder earnings call. Background In this action, Plaintiff Fluor ...

Tagged with: Business Law Judge M. Hannah Lauck U.S. District Court - Eastern District

A company waived the confidentiality of its business information presented at trial, a U.S. district court held. First Amendment principles and the company’s failure to follow Local Rule 5(C) also weighed against sealing the records. Background In this products liability ...

Tagged with: Business Law Civil Procedure Constitutional First Amendment Judge Robert E. Payne Public Records U.S. District Court - Eastern District

An insurer could not enforce an indemnification clause in its insured’s architectural contract because provisions requiring contractors to indemnify other parties for negligence are void in their entirety under Code § 11-4.1. Background Defendant Lessard Design Inc. provides architectural services, including ...

Tagged with: Business Law Construction Contract Judge T.S. Ellis III U.S. District Court - Eastern District

After a $12 million jury award on breach-of-contract and fraudulent inducement claims, the circuit court did not err in vacating the verdict. Lost profits are not recoverable for a fraudulent inducement claim when they are premised on the unenforceable provisions ...

Tagged with: Business Law Contract Justice Elizabeth A. McClanahan Supreme Court of Virginia

The district court’s full jury instructions on mutual assent were a correct statement of Virginia law and not in error. Background Appellants Knox Energy LLC and Consol Energy Inc. filed this action seeking declaratory judgment that a drilling contract with ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Business Law Contract Judge Paul V. Niemeyer

After credit cards were fraudulently opened in their names, a class of optometrists alleged an injury in fact traceable to their professional organization. Background In July 2016, optometrists across the nation noticed that Chase Amazon Visa credit card accounts had ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Constitutional Contract Judge Robert B. King Standing Tort

A foreign company could not establish common-law trademark rights in the United States for the domain “klumba.com” because no American citizens used the company’s service. Hosting Google AdSense on the company’s Ukrainian site also didn’t put its mark in U.S. ...

Tagged with: Business Law Consumer Protection Intellectual Property Judge T.S. Ellis III U.S. District Court - Eastern District

The circuit court erred in in dismissing the plaintiff’s derivative action on the ground that the plaintiff had failed to first make a demand for the limited liability company to take action. No such demand is required when it would ...

Tagged with: Business Law Corporate Corporations Justice Stephen R. McCullough Real Estate Real Property Supreme Court of Virginia

In a contract for services performed that limited the service provider’s liability to the value of the service, any attorneys’ fees awarded also could not exceed the liability cap. Background In September 2012, Plaintiff LAM Enterprises LLC contracted with Defendant ...

Tagged with: Attorneys Fees Business Law Contract Judge David B. Carson Roanoke Circuit Court Virginia Circuit Courts

When a BMW store applied for a renovation permit but then performed a demolition instead, the City of Rockville, Maryland, revoked the previously-granted permit. The company’s initial permit applications contained material misrepresentations, so it had no property interest that could ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Business Law Constitutional Due Process Judge Glen E. Conrad Municipal Real Estate