A law firm that sought attorneys’ fees before they came due under a homebuyer’s promissory note now faces discovery in an action under the federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. The count against the firm is the only claim to ...

Tagged with: Fair Debt Collection Practices Act Judge M. Hannah Lauck U.S. District Court - Eastern District

Where defendants who provided a loan for the purchase of real property allegedly demanded attorneys’ fees before they became due under the promissory note, the plaintiff alleged a plausible claim under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, or FDCPA. Background ...

Tagged with: Consumer Protection Judge M. Hannah Lauck U.S. District Court - Eastern District

Where the plaintiff moved to add Rehabilitation Act and Title VII claims to her second amended complaint through “joinder,” the motion was denied because a party cannot engraft claims on a complaint except through an amended pleading. Background Shawn Gonzalez ...

Tagged with: Employment Discrimination Judge M. Hannah Lauck U.S. District Court - Eastern District

Where a bank argued it rescinded a job offer because it discovered the plaintiff  had pleaded guilty to multiple financial dishonesty crimes, and not because of his race, age or alleged disability, it was not possible to assess on a ...

Tagged with: Employment Discrimination Judge M. Hannah Lauck U.S. District Court - Eastern District

Where former Capital One employees agreed in their severance agreements to not file a collective action, but then did so, Capital One’s breach of contract counterclaim may proceed because it plausibly alleged it suffered damages from having to defend the ...

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

Where two residents claim that after they wrote a letter to other residents about their rights to a smoke-free and drug-free property and the letter was cited as a reason for their eviction, they plausibly alleged a claim for retaliation. ...

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

Where a ruling for immediate appeal under 28 U.S.C. § 1292(b) was previously certified but the Fourth Circuit declined to hear it, the plaintiffs’ renewed motion to certify under Rule 54(b) was denied because the appellate court’s decision suggested this ...

Tagged with: Employment Discrimination Judge M. Hannah Lauck U.S. District Court - Eastern District

Although Virginia state courts allow a party to refile a suit within six months after taking a voluntary nonsuit, even if the statute of limitations has expired, this rule is inapplicable in a federal case involving purely federal claims. Because ...

Tagged with: Employment Discrimination Judge M. Hannah Lauck U.S. District Court - Eastern District

A doctor claiming he was fired for being gay can sue his former employer for Title VII discrimination, a federal judge in Richmond has ruled. The case was filed before the U.S. Supreme Court ruled earlier this year in Bostock ...

Tagged with: Employment Employment Discrimination Judge M. Hannah Lauck

Where a doctor alleges he was subjected to bias and discriminatory comments after he openly referenced and introduced co-workers to his husband, and was then terminated, he plausibly stated a claim for sexual orientation discrimination.  Background This employment action arises ...

Tagged with: Employment Discrimination Judge M. Hannah Lauck U.S. District Court - Eastern District