Husband killed, wife injured in Loudoun County collision – $1,489,495 Settlement
At approximately 1:45 p.m. on Sept. 21, 2009, Kenneth Taylor, driver of a 2005 Nissan Murano, and his wife, the passenger, were involved in an automobile accident with defendant, who was driving a 1997 Ford Expedition. The Taylors were traveling north on Evergreen Mills Road near Fleetwood Road in Leesburg. Defendant was traveling south on […]
Supplier Can Sue to Enforce Mechanic’s Lien
In a supplier’s suit to enforce a mechanic’s lien against homeowners, the homeowners cannot demur to the suit based on the language of an earlier commercial account application between the supplier of construction materials and the builder for defendants, says a Loudoun County Circuit Court. Plaintiff supplied building materials to Foster, a builder for defendants. […]
Infant settlement procedures get an overhaul in Fairfax
Some Northern Virginia judges and lawyers are taking a fresh look at what had been a routine procedure intended to protect the rights of children when settling their civil claims. In Loudoun and Fairfax Counties, judges have decided that, in many cases where they are called on to approve tort settlements, they want to pick […]
Rider on ATV killed by cable over roadway – $1,000,000 Settlement
The 19-year-old decedent was riding an all-terrain vehicle when he encountered a wire cable that the Loudoun County Sanitation Authority had strung across a gravel roadway. Decedent apparently did not see the cable, struck it and died. The gravel road led to a sewer facility used by the defendant, which maintained that the cable was […]
Traffic Offenses – DUI – ‘Highway’ – Public Access
Based on an aerial photograph and detailed description of the parking lot with through access, open to the public, the area where defendant was operating his motor vehicle was a “highway” under Virginia law, and defendant can be convicted of DUI, says a Loudoun County Circuit Court. Defendant contends the area where he was seen […]
Water, water everywhere, and double rates are OK
With its approval of a town’s decision to double the rate it charges for water and sewer service that goes beyond the town’s borders, the Supreme Court of Virginia may have set the stage for legislators to revisit the issue next year. A state senator from Leesburg says he’s concerned about the effect of the […]
Negligence – Settlement – Apparent Authority – Disbarred Lawyer
Where there is no record evidence plaintiff had knowledge of, participated in, assisted with or condoned the settlement negotiations conducted by his attorney of his personal injury claim, a Loudoun Circuit Court will set aside the settlement and set the case for trial. Unbeknownst to plaintiff, Conrad settled the case with GEICO in March 2006. […]
Good Samaritan injured while assisting victim of traffic crash – $375,000 Settlement
Plaintiff, who was formerly an emergency medical technician, encountered a severe accident that happened only moments before on Fairfax County Route 28. He offered assistance to the trooper, who accepted and instructed plaintiff to care for the barely conscious victim. Vehicle damage was so bad that the plaintiff could only get halfway into the victim’s […]
Paying the water bill: Case highlights disparities
Water wars are being waged in Virginia localities, and the Supreme Court of Virginia is poised to dip a toe into the murky depths. Residents of Virginia counties often pay more for water and sewer service than do the residents of towns and cities that provide the service. It’s a big issue for cash-strapped local […]
Domestic Relations – PSA Enforcement – Retirement Pension
A couple’s 1988 property settlement agreement is interpreted by a Loudoun County Circuit Court to provide wife only with a share of husband’s earned pension benefits acquired as a result of his employment with the Fairfax County’s Educational Employees Supplemental Retirement System in effect at the time, due to her upon his retirement, and not […]
Criminal – Habeas Corpus – Ineffective Assistance
Although petitioner’s Virginia lawyer provided constitutionally deficient counsel when he misrepresented New Jersey law by telling petitioner that “New Jersey can’t use [her] Virginia case against” her in New Jersey, and petitioner has shown the necessary prejudice under Strickland v. Washington, a Loudoun County Circuit Court nevertheless denies her habeas petition as moot. Petitioner inq[...]
Criminal – Custodial Interrogation – Airport Customs
A defendant was not in custody for Fourth Amendment purposes because a reasonable person returning to the U.S. through customs would have perceived the restriction attendant to questioning by the federal officers to be unlike the restraint imposed by a formal arrest, and a Loudoun County Circuit Court denies defendant’s motion to suppress statements he […]
Verdicts & Settlements
- Driver fell asleep, causing significant auto accident — $1M settlement
- Defense verdict returned for company in rear-end crash — Defense verdict
- Cauda equina syndrome developed after procedure — $625,000 settlement
- Passenger died months after sustaining multiple injuries — $725,000 settlement
- 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
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