A manufacturer stated a claim for defamation against the project-management company for whom it had provided turbines, based on oblique comments about “quality control” made by the company’s CEO on its shareholder earnings call. Background In this action, Plaintiff Fluor ...

Tagged with: Business Law Contract Judge M. Hannah Lauck Personal Injury Tort U.S. District Court - Eastern District

Based on her responsibilities as set forth in the Virginia Code, a school board’s Director of Budget & Finance was a “public official” who had to show actual malice to prove that a TV news station defamed her. She failed ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Constitutional Defamation Employment First Amendment Judge Henry F. Floyd Personal Injury Tort

A plaintiff claiming that her supervisor defamed her with crude comments at work could not hold their employer vicariously liable for the statements. The comments were outside the scope of employment, and the district court lacked any indication that this ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Employment Judge J. Harvie Wilkinson III Personal Injury Tort

After credit cards were fraudulently opened in their names, a class of optometrists alleged an injury in fact traceable to their professional organization. Background In July 2016, optometrists across the nation noticed that Chase Amazon Visa credit card accounts had ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Constitutional Contract Judge Robert B. King Standing Tort

After taking a homebuyer’s account of foreclosure purchase at face value, a sheriff and his subordinates may go to trial for events that transpired when they accompanied her to the home to remove the previous owners. Background Plaintiffs James and ...

Tagged with: Civil Rights Constitutional Due Process Judge Jackson L. Kiser Personal Injury Search & Seizure Tort U.S. District Court - Western District

An amended complaint can relate back to the filing date of a name fragment if the plaintiff knew the defendant’s identity but not her name, and if all the statutory requirements of Code § 8.01-6 are met. Background Plaintiff Pam Frazier ...

Tagged with: Civil Procedure Fairfax County Circuit Court Judge David A. Oblon Negligence Personal Injury Tort Virginia Circuit Courts

Under clearly established law, publication of public safety officers’ allegedly defamatory termination letters to the media before holding a name-clearing hearing supported the officers’ claims of due process violations. Background During the summer of 2014, Officers with the Bald Head ...

Tagged with: 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Constitutional Defamation Due Process First Amendment Fourteenth Amendment Judge James A. Wynn Jr. Tort

A shopper who was handcuffed and tased by Cabela’s security guards can proceed with claims including wrongful imprisonment, assault and battery, and defamation. He may also be entitled to punitive damages. Background Defendants Patricia Eller and Wendy Brewer are Bristol ...

Tagged with: Constitutional Employment Judge James P. Jones Personal Injury Search & Seizure Tort U.S. District Court - Western District

A plaintiff suing for $4.75 million on a groundless defamation claim is liable for a proportion of the defendant’s litigation fees and costs. The plaintiff’s attorney was not subject to sanctions, as she relied on her client’s information until she ...

Tagged with: Attorneys Attorneys Fees Civil Practice Judge H. Lee Harrell Montgomery County Circuit Court Sanctions Tort Virginia Circuit Courts

Tenants alleging black mold in their walls and mushrooms growing in their carpet weren’t confined to the rights in Code § 8.01-226.12 Background Tenants sued their landlord and a real estate management company, alleging that the apartment they rented exposed them ...

Tagged with: Justice Stephen R. McCullough Landlord/Tenant Personal Injury Supreme Court of Virginia Tort