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Culture of lawyer wellness takes hold in Virginia
HOT SPRINGS – Virginia Supreme Court Chief Justice Donald W. Lemons appeared before the Virginia Bar Association in January 2018, shortly after he had appointed a Virginia Committee of Lawyer Well-Being. The state program was an analogue to a national task force of which Lemons had been a member. The purpose: to promote lawyer wellness […]
Any error in evidence proffer was harmless
Any error relating to the prosecutor’s proffer of evidence at appellant’s probation revocation hearing was harmless. The proffered evidence, a newspaper article that quoted the victim’s description of appellant’s actions, was not the only evidence of the nature of the acts. The major violation report provided to the court noted convictions for abduction by force/intimidation, […]
No standing to attack other felons’ sentences
A felon lacks standing to move to vacate other felons’ sentences as void ab initio. His reliance on Virginian-Pilot Media v. Dow Jones & Co., 280 Va. 464 (2010) for the proposition that standing is immaterial when attacking a void judgment is misplaced. The case was decided by a plurality opinion and a majority of […]
Sentence below statutory minimum is voidable
A sentence imposed below the statutorily required minimum is voidable, not void ab initio, under existing precedent. The existing precedent was not overruled by either Rawls v. Commonwealth, 278 Va. 213 (2009), or Grafmuller v. Commonwealth, 290 Va. 525 (2015). Both cases dealt with sentences that exceeded a statutory maximum. We now clarify that regardless […]
Court approves collateral source rule for contract action
The Supreme Court of Virginia says the collateral source rule – allowing recovery of damages despite insurance benefits – can apply in a contract action. The premise has never been addressed before by the high court, and the justices stopped short of declaring that the collateral source rule would apply in all contract litigation. Nonetheless, […]
Collateral source rule can apply to contract breach cases
Where a federal district court has asked whether Virginia law would apply the collateral source rule in a breach of contract action where an insurer has fully reimbursed the plaintiff for the full amount of damages it sought from the defendant, the Virginia Supreme Court answers in the affirmative and states that the rule can […]
High court, 4-3, approves ‘rehabilitated’ med-mal juror
The Supreme Court of Virginia, by a 4-3 vote, has deferred to a trial judge who allowed a juror to remain trial-eligible, despite the man’s expressed doubts about the fairness of medical malpractice litigation. The decision leaves in place a victory by a doctor in a Richmond trial involving complications from knee surgery. The potential […]
Evidentiary hearing required for actual innocence claim
Where defendant petitioned for a writ of actual innocence based on nonbiological evidence, the Court of Appeals abused its discretion by dismissing the petition without ordering an evidentiary hearing. The appeals court concluded defendant did not prove the truth of “previously unknown and untested witness affidavits,” without giving him the opportunity to establish the truth. […]
Continuance properly denied after counsel was retained
Defendant was not entitled to a continuance under a statute that provides the court “shall” grant a reasonable continuance when a defendant represented by a court-appointed attorney becomes financially able to retain private counsel. The statute does not confer a statutory right to a continuance. The continuance provision is designed to protect a defendant’s existing […]
Inmate gets hearing on name change request
A prison inmate diagnosed with gender dysphoria and who is transitioning from male to female identity is entitled to on-the-merits consideration of an application to change her name. The circuit court’s determination that there was not “good cause” to consider the matter is reversed. Background Brian Allen Leonard, a federal inmate serving a sentence for […]
Inmate gets hearing on name change request
A prison inmate diagnosed with gender dysphoria and who is transitioning from male to female identity is entitled to on-the-merits consideration of an application to change her name. The circuit court’s determination that there was not “good cause” to consider the matter is reversed. Background Brian Allen Leonard, a federal inmate serving a sentence for […]
Decedent’s son could testify about dad’s car crash statements
Where the decedent rear-ended the plaintiff’s car, his description of the accident to his son was correctly admitted under the dead man’s statute. The fact that the decedent’s passenger testified about the crash at trial has no bearing on the admissibility of the decedent’s statements, said the Supreme Court of Virginia. Further, the circuit court […]
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
