Where a farmer alleged he was subjected to “unnecessarily aggressive and ultimately frivolous Planning Department enforcement action,” his procedural and substantive due process, equal protection and conspiracy claims were dismissed. His Fourth Amendment claim against a state official who allegedly ...

Tagged with: Civil Rights Judge Elizabeth K. Dillon U.S. District Court - Western District

Allegations that an information officer was denied a raise a week after she rejected a supervisor’s advances, which were part of a pattern of hostile behavior, were sufficient to assert claims for quid pro quo sexual harassment and a hostile ...

Tagged with: Employment Discrimination Judge Elizabeth K. Dillon U.S. District Court - Western District

Although an inmate argued he was unlikely to travel because of reduced financial resources and temporary restrictions prompted by COVID-19, his prior violation of his bond by traveling out of state led the court to deny his motion for release ...

Tagged with: Criminal Judge Elizabeth K. Dillon U.S. District Court - Western District

A subcontractor working on a modernization project at the Radford Army Ammunition Plant knew Nov. 29, 2016 that its subcontract had been modified to eliminate a certain requirement but did not file a fraud claim until Oct. 17, 2019. The ...

Tagged with: Judge Elizabeth K. Dillon Tort U.S. District Court - Western District

An opinion about the damage caused by the loss of marketability of real property, during and after construction of a natural gas pipeline, was unsupported by any facts or data and relied on an inaccurate measure of damages. Background Mountain ...

Tagged with: Evidence Judge Elizabeth K. Dillon U.S. District Court - Western District

Where the owner of real property that was condemned for a natural gas pipeline sold the property, and the sale documents did not assign the condemnation award, the original owner was entitled to the compensation. Background Mountain Valley Pipeline LLC, ...

Tagged with: Civil Practice Judge Elizabeth K. Dillon U.S. District Court - Western District

The bench trial testimony of a man allegedly injured when his vehicle collided with a mail truck contained enough “misperceptions” and “exaggerations” to doom his claim. The court instead found the testimony of a postal employee consistent and credible, and ...

Tagged with: Judge Elizabeth K. Dillon Negligence U.S. District Court - Western District

Two people who intentionally squatted in trees in order to protest the construction of a pipeline were held in contempt, fined and ordered to pay all of the pipeline’s attorneys’ fees and expenses incurred in obtaining the contempt order. Background ...

Tagged with: Commercial Judge Elizabeth K. Dillon U.S. District Court - Western District

Although prior decisions applied the pleading standards in Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662 (2009), and Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544 (2007), to affirmative defenses, the recent trend declines to do so. But, even under the less-stringent ...

Tagged with: Intellectual Property Judge Elizabeth K. Dillon U.S. District Court - Western District

Although the defendants in a suit claiming breach of contract, indemnification and engineering and design malpractice argued the plaintiff’s common law indemnification claim should be dismissed, their motion was denied because they did not provide the settlement, design services and ...

Tagged with: Contract Judge Elizabeth K. Dillon U.S. District Court - Western District