News & Publications

Litigation Obtained Citizenship Oath for MAVNI Army Specialist Waiting Years

Litigation is often the only way forward for immigrants. That was what U.S. Army Specialist Junfei Ge concluded as he waited nearly three years for the “expedited” naturalization he was promised by the U.S. government when he enlisted under the Military Accessions Vital to the National Interest (MAVNI) program.

August 20, 2019

Tags: Litigation, Immigration Law, verdicts

Help Me Help You: 3 Things Your Attorney Needs to Successfully Defend Your Insured

By: Jim Snyder

When a new case first comes in, certain pieces of information facilitate our initial investigation. Of course, when a lawsuit is the first notice of loss, everyone is starting the defense with little to no information to pass along. However, in most instances, the client has received some essential information before the claim becomes a lawsuit and finds its way to us.

Immediate access to these three things helps us attack the case:

1) Accurate contact information for the named insured and the tortfeasor, if different. This would include at least a phone number and a physical address. Most files arrive with the name and address of the named insured, but being able to pick

August 13, 2019

Tags: Litigation, Insurance Claims

Defendants Win with a Willful Misconduct Seatbelt Defense

By Jessica Hacker Trivizas

Amanda T. Belliveau represented the employer and carrier in a recent win on a willful misconduct defense for failure to wear a seatbelt.

In Mizelle v. Holiday Ice, Inc. , JCN VA00001515696 (June 18, 2019), the claimant testified that he has been aware of Virginia’s law requiring drivers to use a seat belt since he began driving at the age of 16. On the date of his accident, he got into the employer’s truck to make a delivery and started driving without putting his seat belt on. Though he knew the law required him to put on his seat belt, he admitted that he had not put on his seat belt, and testified that he intended to put on his seat belt during the trip. He drove for less than five minutes before he

July 1, 2019

Tags: Litigation, Workers' Compensation, Willful Misconduct

Virginia's March Toward Adopting the Federal Spoliation Rules

From The Journal of Civil Litigation, Published Quarterly by the Virginia Association of Defense Attorneys, VOL. XXXI, NO. 1, Spring 2019. It appears here with permission.

June 13, 2019

Tags: Publications, Litigation, VADA, Articles, spoliation

Material Misrepresentation on an Employment Application as a Defense to Workers' Compensation Claims

A Resource to Utilize in Workers' Comp Defense

March 29, 2019

Tags: Newsletters, Litigation, Workers' Compensation, Articles, evidence

Virginia Legislative Alert: SB1619 Virginia's New Spoliation Law

New Section Added to Virginia Code §8.01-379.2:1

On March 7, 2019, the Virginia legislature passed S1619, which added a new section to the Virginia code addressing spoliation at § 8.01-379.2:1. Governor Ralph Northam signed the new legislation into law on March 21, 2019.

S1619 creates an affirmative duty to preserve evidence that a party should reasonably foresee as being relevant to a future lawsuit. The law instructs courts to examine all of the circumstances when determining when the duty to preserve evidence is triggered. Courts must evaluate when the party in possession of the evidence (1) had notice litigation was likely, and (2) realized that the evidence in question would be relevant to the lawsuit.

The Legislature Provides Two Different Spoliation Remedies

The legislature also provided two different spoliation remedies. First, S1619 provides that when

March 26, 2019

Tags: Government Law, Litigation, Virginia Legislative Alert, spoliation, evidence

Defending Negligence Per Se Claims Under Virginia Law

From The Journal of Civil Litigation, Published Quarterly by the Virginia Association of Defense Attorneys, VOL. XXX, NO. 4, Winter 2018-2019. It appears here with permission.

March 20, 2019

Tags: Litigation, VADA, Negligence Per Se

Virginia Legislative Alert: SB1486 Allows Depositions to be Used in Support of Summary Judgment - Not Quite

Amendment to Virginia Code §8.01-420.

On February 21, 2019, the Governor signed a Bill amending Virginia Code Section 8.01-420. Virginia Code Section 8.01-420 expressly states that depositions cannot be used in support of a Motion for Summary Judgment. The recently enacted amendment to this statute allows depositions to be used, but only in the limited situation where the

March 14, 2019

Tags: Litigation, Insurance Coverage, Virginia Legislative Alert

McCandlish Holton Attorneys Obtain Defense Verdict for Mutual Insurance Company in Jury Trial

Matthew Haynes and Brennan Morrissett obtained a defense verdict on behalf of a mutual insurance company in a Virginia Circuit Court jury trial. The plaintiff/insured filed a 1^st party suit against his homeowner’s insurer alleging breach of contract.

Plaintiff sought to recover more than $250,000 in alleged personal property losses and additional living expenses he claimed resulted from a fire that completely destroyed his residence. Plaintiff sought these amounts eighteen months after the fire, and in addition to

January 29, 2019

Tags: News, Litigation, Local Counsel, Updates, verdicts, Insurance Coverage

GDPR Issues in U.S. and International Litigation and Arbitration

On November 30, 2018, I had the privilege of serving as a panel member on an International Association of Defense Counsel (IADC) presentation addressing GDPR in International Dispute Resolution. The other panel members were: Robert Bond, of Bristows, in London, England; Alexandra Simotta, of Six-Group, in Vienna, Austria; and Janis Block, of CMS in Cologne, Germany. The panel’s objective was to explore the issues arising under the GDPR in international dispute resolution, whether in arbitration or court litigation. My responsibility was to offer a U.S. trial counsel’s response to the subject. This article shares a few of the ideas raised during the panel, and a few which have occurred to the author in response to hearing from my fellow panel members.

January 24, 2019

Tags: Litigation, Business Law, GDPR, Arbitration

News & Publications

Litigation Obtained Citizenship Oath for MAVNI Army Specialist Waiting Years

Help Me Help You: 3 Things Your Attorney Needs to Successfully Defend Your Insured

Defendants Win with a Willful Misconduct Seatbelt Defense

Virginia's March Toward Adopting the Federal Spoliation Rules

Material Misrepresentation on an Employment Application as a Defense to Workers' Compensation Claims

Virginia Legislative Alert: SB1619 Virginia's New Spoliation Law

Defending Negligence Per Se Claims Under Virginia Law

Virginia Legislative Alert: SB1486 Allows Depositions to be Used in Support of Summary Judgment - Not Quite

McCandlish Holton Attorneys Obtain Defense Verdict for Mutual Insurance Company in Jury Trial

GDPR Issues in U.S. and International Litigation and Arbitration

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