The VLW Blog

Scott Hoover has made good on his threat to sue the state over alleged fraud in sales of scratch-off lottery tickets. The business professor’s lawsuit, filed in Richmond Circuit Court by Roanoke attorney John Fishwick, claims that the state lottery has taken in “millions of dollars in sales of tickets falsely promising the chance to win the top prize.”

Hoover claims that the lottery, over the last five years, regularly failed to pull tickets from lottery games after all the top prizes were claimed. He estimates that the lottery gained at least $84.7 million in revenues from the knowing sale of losing tickets. The lawsuit, alleging breach of contract, asks the court to set up a claims procedure to return the money to players.

In a statement released June 11, lottery Executive Director Paula Otto acknowledged “a chance” that tickets from scratcher games remained on sale after the final top prizes were claimed. Otto said, however, that the practice ended in July 2007 and that the lottery is changing its rules to avoid the scenario in the future.

Hoover’s lawsuit has been assigned to Chief Judge Walter W. Stout III, according to the clerk’s office.

By Peter Vieth

You’ve briefed and argued your Virginia circuit court case. Weeks go by and the judge still has it under advisement. Your client wants to know what’s taking so long.

The remedy under the Virginia Code: tell it to the Chief.

That’s right. Under Virginia Code § 17.1-107, if Chief Justice Leroy Hassell, or his designee on the high court, believes a circuit or appellate judge is taking “an unreasonable length of time” to rule in a case, he “shall inquire into the cause of such delay” and can designate another judge to help out.

Now we have a number for “reasonable.” It’s 90 days.

This year the General Assembly amended the statute to provide that if a circuit judge holds a civil case under advisement for more than 90 days after its final submission, the court has to tell the parties or their counsel, in writing, when they may expect a decision.

If the trial judge fails to report to the parties, or to issue a decision within the promised time frame, any party can notify the Chief, who then can apply the “reasonableness standard” and assign help for the slow-poke.

Richmond litigator Ben Ackerly, who mentioned the statutory change at the June 19 “Recent Developments in the Law” update at Virginia Beach, said he’s “not sure this solves the problem.”

If you’re waiting for the trial judge to presumably make a decision in your client’s favor, you don’t want to harass the judge.

But under the statute, the trial judge probably is going to know who gave the nod that led to a nudge from the Supreme Court.
By Deborah Elkins

Virginia Lawyers Weekly is pleased to announce a new benefit for subscribers.

Starting today, you’ll be able to get a full-text copy of any Circuit Court opinion from 2007 onward that we digest in the paper for FREE.

Full-text PDF copies are available through the archives on our Web site, http://www.valawyersweekly.com/

The opinions will be available to any subscriber who has registered for the site.

If you have not registered, the process is easy. On our home page, select “Register for Web site benefits” in the left hand column and fill out the online form. You’ll need to have a copy of your newspaper with you when you sign up.

And if you do not presently subscribe, please take advantage of this great new benefit. Just use the coupon that appears on page 36 of this issue, or call 1-800-451-9998.

The VLW site already provides free full-text copies of opinions from the Supreme Court of Virginia and the Virginia Court of Appeals. Those opinions are available to everyone who comes to the site; the Circuit Court opinions will remain a subscriber-only feature.

Alfred M. Tripp, the Norfolk circuit judge who has not been on the bench since October, has resigned, according to his lawyer.

The reason?

Tripp’s lawyer, Carl Eason, isn’t talking, citing client confidentiality.

The Virginian-Pilot quotes one source as saying that Tripp had been barred from the courthouse.

The reason?

Again, no one is talking, at least for the record. It’s worth noting that reporters for Virginia Lawyers Weekly ran into the same problem as our colleagues at The Pilot. Their first story back in October was somewhat opaque. There have been stories swirling, but nothing that we were willing to publish. Still.

The bottom line: The General Assembly potentially will select three, count ‘em, three new circuit judges for Norfolk, one of the biggest circuits in the commonwealth:
* Tripp has resigned.
* Judge Jerome James is retiring.
* Judge Chuck Griffith, at least for now, doesn’t look likely to get another term.

By accepting a $2,000 check from the defendant to cover medical bills, the plaintiff is not entitled to the $800,000 he later sought in a personal injury lawsuit.

A Rockingham County Circuit Court jury returned a defense verdict in the case of Shifflett v. Shifflett, based on accord and satisfaction.

The suit stemmed from injuries received at a party attended by both Shiffletts (relation undetermined). While swinging a beer bottle, the defendant accidentally struck the plaintiff in the face and broke his tooth.

In an out-of-court meeting shortly after the incident, the defendant, along with his ex-wife, issued a $2,000 check to cover the estimated cost of a tooth implant. “Dentist bill” was noted in the memo line. The plaintiff took the money, then went on to file suit, alleging $3,970 in dental bills in addition to disfigurement and pain and suffering.

Liability was not contested at trial. However, the defense successfully argued that the plaintiff had already settled the dispute by accepting his payment.

Jason J. Ham and Jason A. Botkins of Harrisonburg served as counsel for the defendant.

Look for details of this case and others in the Verdicts & Settlements section of the upcoming June 11 edition.

A California court consulting firm will help Richmond Circuit Court judges develop a new case management system.

Chief Justice Leroy Rountree Hassell Sr. recently wrote Richmond Chief Judge Walter W. Stout III that he has selected Christopher Crawford of Justice Served for the work.

The Richmond circuit has been the only one in the state in which judges specialized in civil or criminal cases.

Few of the judges appointed recently to the court have had a criminal practice, and some judges have insisted on a different method of handling cases and took their complaints to Hassell.

After a contentious meeting between Hassell and the circuit judges, Stout told Hassell that he would attempt to develop a system in which each judge would be randomly assigned civil and criminal cases.

After that suggestion drew a complaint from two judges that the caseloads are inequitable now, Hassell decided to bring in the consultant.