A recent Virginia Supreme Court decision in a medical malpractice suit may have bearings on condemnation proceedings in Virginia. In Gross v. Stuart, 2019 Va. LEXIS 103, the appellant asserted that the circuit court erred in permitting opposing counsel to cross-examine the “defense medical expert” on matters relating to a disciplinary proceeding against the doctor. [...]
Most people in the Virginia eminent domain bar already know that the statewide eminent domain CLE is held at the Tides Inn in Irvington, Virginia, each year. The conference will be held at the same absolutely beautiful venue again for this year, May 2-3, 2019. We expect the usual potpourri of interesting topics in takings, [...]
People think I am pulling their leg when I tell them that in our fine state, a landowner’s friends and business associates may be selected to hear the landowner’s condemnation case and award just compensation. In a Virginia condemnation case a landowner has three options to determine his just compensation: a bench trial, a jury [...]
Many of us who live on the coast have a love affair with the oyster, those salty, umami-laden morsels that regularly appear on our plates, whether raw, steamed, grilled, or fried. Some of us are also familiar with the watermen and aquaculture industry that bring us our oysters. In many states, oysters grow naturally in [...]
Do you think the lease of the tenant you are dealing with is for the number of years it says in their lease? It may not be, depending on if the lease contains the appropriate seal or “seal substitute.” The Virginia Supreme Court’s interpretation of an obscure Virginia statute, the Statute of Conveyances, has the [...]
The Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals found last month that the Uniform Relocation Act does not create a private cause of action against the displacing agency. In Osher v. City of St. Louis, 2018 U.S. App. LEXIS 25277, 2018 WL 4231794 (8th Cir. September 6th, 2018), the Eighth Circuit indicated that “Insofar as [the Eighth [...]
In January of 2017, I participated in a relocation roundtable with four other presenters at the ALI-CLE Eminent Domain Conference in San Diego. As usual, I offered my perspective from that of the condemning authority’s point of view, which I thought was a reasonable and objective based on the text of the applicable law. [...]
Perhaps the most common question any lawyer is asked upon meeting a new acquaintance is “so what sort of law do you practice?” This, and good marketing practices, means I think semi-regularly about my elevator pitch – how to describe what we do in a quick, positive, and engaging way, that conveys the feeling [...]
For those countries with high standards of living, infrastructure plays a major part in allowing that standard of living. For developing countries, infrastructure is a critical element in improving quality of life. However, improvements to infrastructure—and the associated standard of living—come with a price. Creating better, bigger, and more infrastructure requires making some accommodations, including [...]
July 1st is usually the date new statutes passed at a regular session of the General Assembly go into effect, unless otherwise specified. See Va. Code § 1-214 (“A. All laws enacted at a regular session of the General Assembly, including laws which are enacted by reason of actions taken during the reconvened session following [...]