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
On March 16, 2020, the Supreme Court entered the first of numerous orders declaring a judicial emergency as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The statutory authority that permits the Court to declare an emergency requires...more
Contracts around the country, concerning every manner of commercial transaction from employment matters to real estate acquisition to consumer purchases, increasingly include a requirement that disputes will be resolved...more
4/26/2019
/ Ambiguous ,
Appeals ,
Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Class Arbitration ,
Consent ,
Federal Arbitration Act ,
Federal v State Law Application ,
Jurisdiction ,
Lamps Plus Inc v Varela ,
Motion to Compel ,
Preemption ,
Reversal ,
SCOTUS
Generally speaking, Virginia criminal defendants who want to challenge their convictions have only a few options. None of them are very good. They have 30 days from the date of their conviction to appeal to the Virginia Court...more
Officer Matthew Minard of the Taylor, Michigan Police Department pulled over Debra Cruise-Gulyas for speeding. He cut her a break and cited her only for a non-moving violation. A lot of people would’ve been grateful, but...more
Ever bought a song or an album on iTunes and, after a while, decided you didn’t like it? Did you wish you could sell it somewhere, to someone, for something, the way you might have done with an old vinyl record or CD?...more
In 2015, Judge Robert Payne of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia previewed in a noteworthy concurrence and dissent that in the Fourth Circuit, partisan gerrymandering may be unconstitutional :...more
Last week, in Sere v. Trapeni, the Virginia Supreme Court handed down a very interesting opinion in a legal malpractice appeal. The Court provided important guidance on when a court’s previous rulings can affect new cases and...more