A federal court must determine that it has subject matter jurisdiction and personal jurisdiction and that venue is proper before it can adjudicate a matter. If it lacks any one of the three, the court will not proceed, and it need not examine whether the other two requirements are met.…
Virginia’s statute of frauds provides that “[u]nless a …contract…is in writing and signed by the party to be charged or his agent, no action shall be brought…[u]pon any agreement that is not to be performed within a year.” Va. Code Ann. § 11-2(8). A party wishing to assert the statute…
Although a plaintiff asserting a fraud claim in federal court may allege malice, intent, knowledge, and other conditions of a person’s mind in general terms, he must plead the circumstances constituting the fraud with particularity, identifying the time, place, content, and maker of each alleged fraudulent circumstance. Failure to plead…
Virginia Code § 8.01-581.01 et seq. evidences a public policy favoring arbitration. Virginia’s statutory scheme provides that arbitration agreements between parties are valid and enforceable, and courts uphold the parties’ designated method of appointing an arbitrator. Where the parties’ appointed arbitrator is unable to act and the parties have not…
When companies sue their former employees on the ground that they allegedly breached a broadly-worded noncompete agreement, a common defense tactic has been to file a demurrer, arguing that the complaint fails to state a claim upon which relief can be granted. The thinking was that if the noncompete agreement…
A plaintiff employee with no direct evidence of disability discrimination must establish a prima facie case of wrongful termination. If he succeeds, the defendant employer is required to articulate a legitimate, non-discriminatory reason for the termination. The burden then shifts back to plaintiff to show that the reason offered was…
Upon a showing of a change in circumstances since the suit was originally filed, a plaintiff can successfully move for a change of venue to a district where the case might have originally been brought if such a transfer would be convenient to parties and witnesses and would serve the…
Sometimes a court must decide a matter that turns on the law of another jurisdiction. If the other jurisdiction’s law is unclear, the deciding court can make a formal request to its sister court asking that court to clarify an issue. The Fourth Circuit recently invoked this procedure and certified…
Earlier this month, Judge Hilton of the Eastern District of Virginia tossed claims against Tysons Law Group, Vienna Law Group, and affiliated attorneys for “vicarious liability” and “negligent hiring, retention and supervision.” Virginia does not recognize an independent cause of action for vicarious liability or negligent supervision. While it does…
Those who personally guarantee repayment of a loan need to understand that a personal guarantee means what it says: if the primary obligor fails to pay, expect the noteholder to come after you. In City National Bank v. Tress (from the Western District of Virginia), the court considered various defenses…