Opinion by Justice WILLIAM C. MIMS . In this appeal, we consider whether Code 22.1-296.1 prohibits a school board from hiring an applicant for employment who has been previously convicted of a felony. I. BACKGROUND AND MATERIAL PROCEEDINGS BELOW In 1992, Deilia Butler was convicted of a felony drug offense. In 2000, she was licensed to teach by the Virginia Board of Education. In July 2006, she applied to the Fairfax County School Board ("the Board") for a teaching position. She...
Opinion by Justice WILLIAM C. MIMS . In this appeal, we consider whether a lawful permanent resident of the United States received ineffective assistance of counsel when advised about a plea agreement pertaining to a charge of grand larceny, a crime involving moral turpitude rendering her deportable under 8 U.S.C. 1227(a)(2)(A)(i). I. BACKGROUND AND MATERIAL PROCEEDINGS BELOW Betty Bustillo Fuentes, a lawful permanent resident of the United States, was indicted on a single count of...
Opinion by Justice WILLIAM C. MIMS . In this appeal, we consider whether Code 38.2-209(A) requires a trial judge, rather than a jury, to determine whether an insurer committed a bad faith breach of an insurance contract warranting an award of attorney's fees to the insured. I. BACKGROUND AND MATERIAL PROCEEDINGS In 2000, REVI, LLC ("REVI") purchased a five-acre parcel of residential property along the Potomac River in Fairfax County (the "Property"). At that time, REVI also purchased...
Opinion by Justice CLEO E. POWELL . Paul Lee ("Lee") and Strategic Health Care Company, Inc. ("SHC") appeal the judgment of the trial court awarding Lisa Spoden ("Spoden") $138,880.50. Specifically, Lee and SHC argue that Spoden's claims were barred by the doctrine of res judicata, that the trial court erred in excluding evidence of a prior ruling related to the real property at issue in this case and that the verdict should have been set aside on the grounds that it exceeded the amount...
Opinion by Senior Justice LEROY F. MILLETTE, JR. . In this appeal we determine that a road construction employee was (1) "getting out of" the dump truck he was operating and (2) "using" a pickup truck as a safety vehicle, as those terms are used in a motor vehicle insurance policy to establish insurance coverage. I. FACTS AND PROCEEDINGS "We will defer to the circuit court's determination of the facts unless [such a determination is] unsupported by evidence or plainly wrong[,] because...
Opinion by Justice LEROY F. MILLETTE, JR. In this appeal we consider (1) whether any of nine statements by the defendant are sufficiently defamatory in nature to survive demurrer, and (2) whether the allegations state a claim for tortious interference with contract. I. FACTS AND PROCEEDINGS This appeal arises from circumstances surrounding a special use permit application regarding a prospective property for 3 Dog Farm, LC, a company that provides rehabilitation services to displaced...
Opinion by Chief Justice DONALD W. LEMONS . In this appeal, we consider whether the trial court erred when it ordered a photocopy of a will to be probated. We must determine whether the trial court applied the correct legal standard in reaching its decision, and whether the evidence was sufficient to support the trial court's determination. I. Facts and Proceedings James A. Edmonds, Jr. ("Edmonds") died on April 30, 2013. Edmonds was survived by his wife, Elizabeth Cashman Edmonds ("...
Opinion by Justice WILLIAM C. MIMS . In this appeal, we consider whether Code 55-52, which codifies the doctrine of after-acquired title, retroactively cures a title defect in a deed of trust to subject the interest of a subsequent purchaser without notice or a lien creditor to the deed of trust. We also consider whether a party who acquires a deed of trust pursuant to a court order is a lien creditor, and whether a prior deed of trust recorded outside a party's chain of title is "duly...
Opinion by Justice LEROY F. MILLETTE, JR. In this appeal we determine to what extent implied-in-fact contracts encompass the terms of previously expired express contracts that were not executed by the parties to the implied-in-fact contracts. I. FACTS AND PROCEEDINGS Spectra-4 LLP and Spectet Limited Partnership, LLP are limited liability partnerships that individually own and lease neighboring commercial buildings in Reston, Virginia. This appeal arises out of a dispute over the...
Opinion by Justice ELIZABETH A. McCLANAHAN . Yelp, Inc. ("Yelp"), appeals from the judgment of the Court of Appeals affirming the order of the Circuit Court of the City of Alexandria holding Yelp in civil contempt for failing to comply with a non-party subpoena duces tecum served upon it by Hadeed Carpet Cleaning, Inc. ("Hadeed"). The subpoena duces tecum directed Yelp, a Delaware corporation with its principal place of business in California, to produce documents located in California in...
Opinion by Justice CLEO E. POWELL . EE Mart F.C., L.L.C. ("EE Mart"), appeals the judgment of the trial court ordering it to pay sanctions under Code 8.01271.1. Specifically, EE Mart takes issue with the trial court's award of attorney's fees that were incurred as a result of actions filed by EE Mart in other jurisdictions. I. BACKGROUND EE Mart is a Virginia limited liability company that owned and operated an international grocery store in Merrifield, Virginia. Suzanne Delyon ("...
Opinion by Justice LEROY F. MILLETTE, JR . In this appeal we consider, among other issues, (1) whether an attorney breaches the duty to a client by failing to correctly anticipate a judicial ruling on an unsettled legal issue, (2) whether collectibility is relevant to a legal malpractice claim when the alleged injury is the loss of an otherwise viable claim, and (3) whether non-pecuniary damages are recoverable in a legal malpractice claim. I. Facts And Proceedings This appeal arises...
Opinion by Justice S. BERNARD GOODWYN . In this appeal, we consider whether there is a special relationship between an attorney and a private investigator hired by that attorney to serve process, which imposes a duty upon the attorney to warn the private investigator of potential danger from criminal assault by a third party. Background On September 1, 2011, Debara D. Brown (Brown) filed a complaint as executor of the estate of her husband Arthur Gregory Brown (the decedent) in the...
GOODWYN , Justice . In this appeal, we consider whether a shareholder in a Virginia corporation is entitled to appraisal rights under Virginia law when a Virginia corporation changes its state of incorporation prior to a sale of its assets. Background On August 29, 2013, Robert B. Fisher, Carla L. Fisher, Bradley G. Rhodes and James D. Schwartz (Minority Shareholders) filed a complaint in the Circuit Court of Henrico County to demand shareholder appraisal rights concerning the sale of...
Opinion by Justice LEROY F. MILLETTE, JR. In this appeal we consider whether the Tax Commissioner employed a permissible methodology — a payroll percentage calculation — to determine the amount of certain receipts that, pursuant to Code 58.1-3732(B)(2), may be deducted from the pool of taxable gross receipts upon which a locality may levy a business license tax. I. Facts And Proceedings The Nielsen Company (US), LLC promotes itself as "a global information and measurement company...
Opinion by Justice ELIZABETH A. McCLANAHAN . In this products liability action, Hyundai Motor Company, Ltd., and Hyundai Motor America, Inc. (Hyundai) appeal from a judgment entered on a jury verdict in favor of Keith Allen Duncan and Vanessa Duncan, Guardians and Conservators for Zachary Gage Duncan (Gage), and Keith Allen Duncan and Vanessa Duncan, Individually. 1 Hyundai contends the circuit court erred in admitting the opinion testimony of the Duncans' designated expert witness, who...
