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No jurisdiction to hear ecclesiastical matter
Where plaintiff claims he was defamed by a church pastor, the court lacks jurisdiction over the case based on the ecclesiastical abstention doctrine. Background Rimer was a United Methodist Church (UMC) pastor. He sued defendant for defamation arising from two letters defendant sent to plaintiff’s superiors in the UMC organization, Reverend Kim and Bishop Lewis. […]
Court rejects offer to buy structured settlement payments
A Virginia circuit court has denied a petition filed by a factoring company seeking to purchase structured settlement payments from a woman with neurocognitive impairments. The present value of the payments is $140, 738. The proposed purchase price? A mere $10,000. “It is difficult to fathom many circumstances in which a person’s best interests are […]
Purchase of structured settlement payments denied
It is not in petitioner’s best interest to approve the sale of her structured settlement payments, which have a present value of $140,738, for $10,000. “The Court cannot determine that Petitioner’s best interests are served by her relinquishing to a factoring company 93% of the value of her structured settlement payments. The petition will be […]
Failure to file default does not bar foreclosure
Where a lender did not record a notice of default and acceleration as provided for in the promissory note, that did not prevent the lender from foreclosing on the property. Plaintiff refers to the recording requirement as a “precondition to foreclosure” but the deed of trust provides the lender with several options if there is […]
Oyer denied for party bus inspection certificate
Where plaintiff’s decedent was killed when she fell through an open or unsecured door on a moving party bus, a defense motion craving oyer of an inspection certificate for the bus is denying because plaintiff’s negligence claim does not arise from the certificate. A demurrer filed by the company that inspected the bus is sustained. […]
Defendant can withdraw murder guilty plea
Where it appears that defendant may not have been advised that his mere presence and consent to a robbery in which the victim was shot and killed did not make him a principle in the second degree, the court grants his motion to withdraw his guilty pleas to second-degree murder, using a firearm in commission […]
No double jeopardy in felon’s gun case
Defendant’s guarantee against double jeopardy is not violated by a second prosecution for being a violent felon in possession of a firearm because the act underlying this prosecution is different than the acts for which he was convicted in his first prosecution. In the first prosecution, defendant had multiple weapons at his residence on Jan. […]
Attorneys’ fees ordered as discovery sanction
Where plaintiff did not disclose, in response to defendant’s discovery request, a medical care provider he consulted for a second opinion in this medical malpractice case, plaintiff must pay defendant’s attorneys’ fees relating to the discovery violation. Background Plaintiff sued Sentara Virginia Beach General Hospital, alleging that Sentara’s nurses negligently managed his bladder in con[...]
Discovery misstep nets $21K in sanctions
Despite a “suspicious” omission of unfavorable medical information, a Norfolk judge refused to hobble a medical malpractice case because the plaintiff and his lawyer dragged their feet in supplementing discovery responses. The defendant hospital claimed there was a “blatant abuse of the discovery process,” but the plaintiff’s lawyer – in an affidavit – described only […]
Severance damages opinions excluded in easement case
Where a shipyard claims a natural gas company’s pipeline, constructed on an easement over the shipyard’s property, entitles it to severance damages, the court grants the gas company’s motion to exclude expert opinions on the amount of severance damages. Overview Virginia Natural Gas, VNG, constructed a pipeline on a permanent 30-foot easement over property owned […]
Woman sued over issues with breast reconstruction – Defense Verdict
Plaintiff underwent a prophylactic bilateral mastectomy. She then underwent a two-stage breast reconstruction surgery using tissue expanders by the defendant plastic surgeon. Plaintiff alleged that the defendant failed to provide alternative surgical options, such as autologous-tissue reconstruction, and failed to adequately advise her of the risks of the procedure. She alleged permanent weakness [...]
Hospital owed plaintiff duty to protect from attack
Despite the absence of facts demonstrating probable harm or specific threat, the court found a hospital did have a duty to a patient who was attacked by another patient in the emergency room. Background The complaint alleges that on Oct. 9, 2015, plaintiff, Gordey Denisenko, checked into defendant’s emergency room at Sentara Norfolk General Hospital […]
Verdicts & Settlements
- Jury reaches defense verdict in $4M med mal action
- Dental hygienist tripped, fractured right wrist, foot — $190,000 settlement
- Couple contracted Hepatitis A after dining at restaurant — $5.5M settlement
- Elderly man suffers hip fracture after attack by neighbor’s dog — $350,000 settlement
- Motorcyclist injured when vehicle abruptly changed lanes — $300,000 verdict
- Passenger ejected from car in high-speed chase crash — $685,000 settlement
- Defense verdict reached in fraud suit
- 8-year-old killed in crash involving tractor-trailer — $1,100,000 settlement
- Plaintiff conceived child after vasectomy — $250,000 settlement
- Delay in diagnosis of ectopic pregnancy led to surgery — $283,432.18 settlement
- Golfer stepped in sinkhole, fractured ankle — $442,000 verdict
- Jury sides with woman injured in rear-end collision — $300,000 verdict
Viewpoint
- The promise and peril of artificial intelligence in patent law
- Keys to becoming an unfrazzled lawyer
- Confused about federal COVID-19 emergencies ending? You’re not alone
- Generative AI in law: New survey of lawyer perspectives and plans
- Four misconceptions about appeals
- Font choice exposes fabricated document
- USPTO launches first-time filer expedited exam pilot program
- In times of crisis, the ‘tug of war’ is over
- The ever-evolving Fourth Circuit
- Federal protections for pregnant, nursing employees coming
- It’s time for employers to embrace the ‘Big Quit’ and adapt
- Tell the whole truth? I’ll do better than that
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