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Dominion Wins Damages for Coal Quality
Defendant Bransen Energy Inc. breached a series of contracts governing the quality of coal it was to send to plaintiff Dominion for use in its “new environmentally friend and technologically sophisticated power plant,” the Virginia City Hybrid Energy Center; the Richmond U.S. District Court awards Dominion damages totaling $20,936,688. Defendant produced coal which simply fell […]
Defense Lawyer’s Job Application Not a ‘Conflict’
A Richmond U.S. District Court rejects petitioner’s “bizarre theory” that his court-appointed trial lawyer had a conflict of interest because he had a pending application for a magistrate judge position in the same federal court that sentenced petitioner on mail and wire fraud charges; the post-conviction motion under 28 U.S.C. § 2255 is denied. Defendant […]
Creditor’s Appeal Didn’t Reach All Orders
Although a creditor timely noted an appeal from the bankruptcy court’s denial of the creditor’s challenge to discharge of a state court judgment against debtor, the creditor failed to appeal from the order disallowing the creditor’s proof of claim; saying it has no jurisdiction to provide any effective relief, the Richmond U.S. District Court dismisses […]
Venue Transfer in Uber Assault Case
In this assault and battery suit filed against Uber by a Virginia citizen and a Texas citizen after they were assaulted and attacked in New York City by an Uber driver who allegedly demanded a higher fare, drove one with one plaintiff in the midst of the dispute, then waited outside their hotel and attacked […]
FTCA Claim Against VA Hospital Dismissed
A Richmond U.S. District Court dismisses a woman’s suit against a VA hospital and a van transport provider alleging defendants failed to stabilize her husband who died during his transport from a dialysis treatment that ended one hour prematurely; plaintiff failed to administratively exhaust her claim under the Federal Tort Claims Act or certify her […]
HR Manager’s Retaliation Claim Fails
A plaintiff who alleges she was the oldest person in her position when she was fired as a human resources manager for Amazon has not stated a claim for retaliation under Title VII or the Age Discrimination in Employment Act because she did not mention age or gender in her complaints to Amazon about being […]
Defaulting Homeowner Has Contract Claims
A homeowner who alleges defendant mortgage lender’s notice of loan acceleration prior to foreclosure overstated the amount due by over $9,000; the notice failed to include her right to bring court action and defendant failed to attempt to set up a face-to-face meeting prior to foreclosure, has stated a plausible claim for breach of contract […]
Credit reporting company to pay $12M
Virginia consumer lawyers have scored a judgment worth nearly $12 million in a class action against a credit reporting company that deliberately obscured sources of information on credit reports. The misleading information likely hampered consumers trying to discover the sources of unfavorable credit data on their reports. The agreed judgment followed a ruling last year […]
Customer Avoiding Panhandler Can’t Sue Store
A woman who alleges injuries from a fall while seeking to avoid a panhandler near a Wal-Mart store cannot sue the store for negligence, says a Richmond U.S. District Court. Wal-Mart had no duty to protect plaintiff from the panhandler’s acts (or lack thereof). Virginia has consistently adhered to the rule that a business owner […]
Defamation Claim Preempted by ERISA
A pharmacy technician’s claim that defendant disability carrier defamed her in letters to her doctor and employer when she applied for disability benefits is preempted by her federal ERISA suit; the Richmond U.S. District Court dismisses plaintiff’s state law defamation claim. Plaintiff sought first short-term, then long-term disability benefits, as a result of multiple injuries […]
Merged Company Claims Escrow Funds
In this involuntary bankruptcy proceeding of a debtor that merged with counterclaim defendant prior to the bankruptcy, the Richmond U.S. District Court denies the counterclaim defendant’s motion to withdraw reference and to sever the trustees’ counterclaims challenging the counterclaim defendants’ rights to common stock held in an escrow account. In May 2014, an involuntary bankruptcy [&hell[...]
Business Contacts Not Enough for Jurisdiction
Plaintiffs, two Virginia LLCs, may sue a former employee of one of the companies in Richmond U.S. District Court, as he worked in Virginia for the company for six years, as well as his new employer, an Oklahoma LLC that directed its business activities at Virginia, but the court does not have personal jurisdiction […]
Verdicts & Settlements
- Plaintiff injured in crash with oncoming vehicle — $235,000 settlement
- Driver killed in rear-end collision with tractor-trailer — $1.5M settlement
- Man died from pancreatic cancer after delayed response — $1.8M settlement
- Worker fell off roof, rendering him a paraplegic — $1.25M settlement
- Driver sustained permanent hearing loss after traffic collision — $240,000 settlement
- Plaintiff suffered concussion in rear-end collision — $81,000 verdict
- Builder misrepresented home status to buyers — $675,000 verdict
- Low potassium led to cardiac arrest, death of patient — $1M settlement
- Excessive propofol caused death in dialysis patient — $850,000 settlement
- Pedestrian struck in crosswalk in hit-and-run incident — $300,000 settlement
- Navy veteran killed in collision with box truck — $1.85M arbitration award
- Motorcyclist ejected from bike in collision with SUV — $1.5M settlement
Opinion Digests
- Company owner dodges breach of contract suit
- Employee’s own allegations doom minimum wage claim
- Federal government defeats former employee’s claims
- Principal wasn’t entitled to exclusively remote work
- USPTO properly redacted info in responsive documents
- Untimely lawsuit allowed to proceed
- Engineering consultant dismissed from suit
- Rule 60 motion was filed too late
- Nonprofit directors immune from ex-employees’ claims
- City, employees immune from whistleblower claims
- Experts excluded in condemnation damages suit
- Judgment entered against company for horse’s death
