Emails prepared in response to possible litigation were not covered by the work product doctrine because they did not involve investigation of the claim or development of legal strategy, and were not part of a coordinated defense strategy with the ...

Tagged with: Evidence Judge Robert S. Ballou U.S. District Court - Western District

A student involved in a university investigation of alleged domestic and dating violence can proceed anonymously in his civil rights suit against Virginia Tech and university employees because the suit implicates privacy interests, revealing his name could expose him or ...

Tagged with: Civil Rights Judge Elizabeth K. Dillon U.S. District Court - Western District

Where the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, or FERC, authorized the construction of an interstate natural gas pipeline, Nelson County could not “halt” construction by arguing the project violated local environmental regulations. Instead, the county’s floodplain regulations were preempted because they ...

Tagged with: Administrative Judge Norman K. Moon U.S. District Court - Western District

Many Virginia prosecutors have relief from their normally tight speedy-trial deadlines for bringing criminal defendants to justice under rulings from three influential courts. The decisions were prompted by the coronavirus outbreak. The federal courts of Virginia and the Fairfax County ...

Tagged with: Coronavirus Criminal U.S. District Court - Eastern District U.S. District Court - Western District Virginia Circuit Courts

Where alleged differences in the way a male student was treated during a domestic violence investigation could lead a reasonable fact finder to conclude that gender bias played a role, the student’s Title IX claim survived a motion to dismiss. ...

Tagged with: Civil Rights Judge Elizabeth K. Dillon U.S. District Court - Western District

The case was ordered to arbitration because, although the warranty company selected the arbitration service, there was no evidence the rules and processes would be one-sided, unfair or biased against the homeowners. In addition, the homeowners only speculated the arbitration ...

Tagged with: Arbitration Judge Elizabeth K. Dillon U.S. District Court - Western District

A jury will decide if the fatal shot to decedent came from a distance or close range. However, two retired police officers named as plaintiff’s experts must persuade the court that they have sufficient expertise to render an opinion as ...

Tagged with: Civil Rights Judge Michael F. Urbanski U.S. District Court - Western District

A second federal judge in Virginia has concluded that giving the finger to a police officer does not create enough suspicion of trouble to justify a traffic stop. The decision overturns a jury verdict in favor of a Patrick County ...

Tagged with: Constitutional Criminal Judge Michael F. Urbanski U.S. District Court - Western District

The court agreed with the majority of courts around the country that, in an insurance contract exclusion for “surface water,” that term includes water on a roof. Because the property damage claim arose from water that ponded on the insured’s ...

Tagged with: Insurance Judge Michael F. Urbanski U.S. District Court - Western District

Where a tenant’s breach of contract claim against its landlord for damages stemming from a roof collapse would resolve all issues in dispute, the tenant’s declaratory judgment claim was dismissed as unnecessary. The breach of contract claim survived because an ...

Tagged with: Contract Judge Jackson L. Kiser U.S. District Court - Western District