The Library

I admit it. I am an appellate argument junkie. This has been a long-standing problem, but when the Supreme Court of Virginia began releasing audio recordings of its oral arguments earlier this year, my habit took on new dimensions. I can now listen to hours of appellate argument without leaving the house, car, or office. This has brought new purpose to my long daily commute (I hope the legislature will not make this illegal), and I’m totally hooked. But what’s the big deal, concerned friends ask – audio recordings of Fourth Circuit arguments have been available for some time now. […]

For three years in law school, finishing in 1993, I think I hardly heard the word “mediation,” much less had any courses or training in it. In clerking in the US District Court in Norfolk for a year after that, I don’t recall much, if any, mediation occurring, certainly not with magistrate judges the way it is today. Within days of arriving at work at Gentry Locke in the fall of 1994, however, I can vividly remember having conversations with a colleague about John McCammon starting a “mediation business.” Not long after that, I began getting involved in representing parties […]

A pillar of Virginia workers’ compensation law is the requirement that the claimed injury “arise out of” the claimant’s employment. The Virginia Workers’ Compensation Commission and Virginia appellate courts generally interpret this to mean that there must be a “causal link” between the claimant’s job and his injury. That is, if the cause of your injury is unrelated to your job, your injury is not compensable — even if you were injured while you were doing your job. While such a scenario can be difficult for laymen to immediately apprehend, there are many cases that illustrate this principle. For instance, […]

As an employment lawyer who has represented Virginia businesses for 25 years, I have a different perspective from those persons who advocate that employers stop asking applicants to check a “box” if they had a prior criminal conviction. I recommend that Virginia employers “keep the box.” To understand this issue better, there are two primary legal concepts to consider. First, the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) proclaims that an employer risks a violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act if it fails to hire an applicant based solely on the fact that he disclosed a prior conviction […]

Two partners set out on their own to create a business from scratch, intending to embark on an adventure and fulfill the American dream. Making a little money wouldn’t hurt either. In the midst of start-up efforts, planning for a split-up or even a management deadlock is rarely at the top of the entrepreneur’s to-do list. However, the longer it takes to address succession issues, the more difficult it may be to reach a mutually acceptable arrangement. It is therefore important for every closely held business owner to devise an “exit strategy” tailored to his or her needs. For ease […]

This article, written by Gentry Locke attorneys William R. Rakes, Gregory J. Haley, and Abigail E. Murchison, was a Virginia CLE presentation to attendees of an event sponsored by the Advanced Business Litigation Institute in Charlottesville, Virginia on June 21, 2014. Due to the length of the article, it is provided in PDF format here. Introduction The topic of trying breach of contract cases from the defense perspective is huge. This outline addresses recurring themes and topics in defending these cases. The content reflects the personal experiences of the authors and the “lessons learned.” Many of the comments below may […]

Litigation is often anything but civil. Instead of opposing counsel working together to resolve pre-trial issues and get to the merits of the case so that a jury or judge can resolve a dispute, a lawyer’s ego will often turn a case into something other than a dispute between two parties. Parties sometimes encourage this type of litigation by hiring a “tough guy” to represent them. This can lead to messy litigation, increased costs and a great deal of wasted energy and effort. Because of this, Virginia state courts are sanctioning both parties and counsel on a regular basis these […]

Every year, millions of Americans purchase insurance policies to protect themselves, their families, and their businesses. This insurance, whether in the form of an automobile policy, a homeowners policy, or a business policy usually has two component parts: the property coverage and the liability coverage. Perhaps encouraged by the current marketing campaigns of a number of insurance carriers today, most of us tend to focus upon the property coverage – e.g., how quickly our cars can be fixed after a “fender-bender,” or whether a stolen television will be replaced by a new one. However, the true value of these policies […]

If you were catastrophically injured or killed in a motor vehicle accident tomorrow, how much money would it take to replace your economic value to your family? How much uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage do you have? How much would it cost to protect your family? These are questions that very few people ask themselves. However, every day, people are catastrophically injured or killed in motor vehicle accidents and all too often there is little to no insurance to cover their losses. This is a tragedy. Just as tragic is the fact that it’s completely preventable and surprisingly inexpensive to […]