Senate Bill 999 has passed the Senate and been reported out of the Civil Subcommittee from the House Courts of Justice Committee. The bill, if passed by the House and signed by the Governor, would have two important...more
In a case, as they say, ripped from the headlines, the Virginia Court of Appeals has put on a clinic explaining the inter-play between the First Amendment and defamation law. The Court, in Patel v. CNN made clear that...more
Courts are supposed to decide only the necessary things. They’re supposed to avoid weighing in on issues that don’t need a decision. Those principles came to a head in the Supreme Court of Virginia last month in Rebh v...more
If you enjoy a little appellate litigation geekery, Watts v. Commonwealth, from the Court of Appeals of Virginia, is a treat of a case. It’s got technical rules governing the difference between a trial court’s oral rulings...more
This spring, the U.S. Department of Education imposed a staggering $14 million fine against Liberty University, a private university in Lynchburg, Virginia. The DOE fined Liberty for violating the federal Clery Act which...more
11/5/2024
/ Clery Act ,
Colleges ,
Department of Education ,
Educational Institutions ,
Gender-Based Violence ,
Rape ,
Sexual Assault ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Sexual Violence Policies ,
Students ,
Universities
In Zeng v. Wang, the Court of Appeals of Virginia reminded practitioners of a couple important lessons. Here are two of them. First, investors should read and understand the fine print of any prospectus before signing on the...more
Picking up trash is one of those unglamorous but essential government functions that we take for granted right up until a couple pick-ups in a row are missed. In those moments we all learn just how essential it is that the...more
Almost 50 years ago, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, in a short, six paragraph opinion, ruled that pro se parties, those without lawyers, are entitled to “notice sufficiently understandable to [the pro se...more
The Supreme Court of Virginia taught appellate practitioners yet another hard lesson in how procedural pitfalls can scuttle otherwise compelling appeals. In Eckard v. Commonwealth, the pitfall was failing to get the complete...more
Last month, in Snyder v. United States, the Supreme Court of the United States narrowly construed the federal anti-bribery statute. In that case, the mayor of Portage, Indiana worked with other officials to carefully prepare...more
7/2/2024
/ Bribery ,
Corruption ,
Fraud ,
Illegal Gratuities ,
Mayors ,
Public Bidding ,
Public Corruption ,
Public Officials ,
Public Servants ,
SCOTUS ,
Snyder v United States ,
Undue Influence Claims ,
Virginia
“A deadline means what it says,” is a simple enough concept. But it’s not always true....more
Everyone on social media at some point has to figure out how they’re going to use it. Will their account be public? Will they post information about family? Current events? Religion? Politics? If the account’s not open to...more
US District Judge Engelmayer, from the Southern District of New York, put on a bit of a clinic last week when ruling on an attorney fee application in J.G. v. New York City Department of Education. The plaintiff’s law firm...more
You might think 50 pages or 12,300 words, in the Virginia Court of Appeals, or 30 pages or 13,000 words, in the federal courts of appeals, would be more than enough space for a lawyer to get out an argument. If you do, you’re...more
It happens often enough that lawyers receive communications from clients that have a “dual purpose.” In part the communication seeks legal advice. In part, though, the communication asks for business, or family, or personal...more
The US Supreme Court decided City of Austin v. Reagan National Advertising of Austin yesterday. The case got the Court back into deciding what kinds of outdoor signs can be regulated. You might think that driving down the...more
Last month, the U.S. Supreme Court provided very helpful instruction on how to enforce arbitration agreements under the Federal Arbitration Act. Short answer: most of the time, arbitrations will get enforced in state court,...more
What do you suppose the Supreme Court might tell a politician who filed a lawsuit complaining that other politicians said mean things about him? You might think the Court would say, “Toughen up, Buttercup!” Well, yesterday,...more
Sometimes oral argument in a case highlights oddities of the work we do. That happened today in the Virginia Supreme Court in LaRock v. City of Norfolk. Can an appellate court in a particular case go outside the appellate...more
In Eberhardt v. Commonwealth, the Virginia Court of Appeals took up a case from Dinwiddie involving child cruelty. The case concluded, unsurprisingly, that the Commonwealth had sufficiently proven the appellant was guilty....more
Evans v. Evans has rightly received attention for its helpful discussion of when notice by publication is permitted. Less prominently featured, but as important for appellate practitioners, is the Supreme Court’s discussion...more
In U.S. v. Jenkins, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit handed down an opinion with an interesting wrinkle for appellate practitioners. It took up the question of when an appellate record that’s incomplete, on...more
The Supreme Court of Virginia put on a little tutorial last week on the subject of “necessary parties” to a lawsuit. It’s a smart lesson and a useful reminder that when we try a case, we have to be careful to remember to...more
From time to time, a contract will have a “confessed judgment” clause in it. These clauses can be a valuable tool in an agreement. Take for example, an agreement to lend money. If my agreement with you to lend you money...more
Virginians have lots of images in mind when they think of someone getting arrested for a crime. Sometimes they picture a driver in cuffs on the side of the road. Sometimes they imagine, with the aid of television and movie...more