The VLW Blog

The Supreme Court of Virginia ruled today that the regional transportation plan for Northern Virginia violates the state constitution.
The constitution bars the imposition of taxes by non-elected bodies such as the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority, Justice S. Bernard Goodwyn wrote for a unanimous court. It doesn’t matter that the all but two of the members […]

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A comprehensive restructuring of the way localities pay for the costs of growth perhaps proved to be too comprehensive too soon.
Senate Bill 768 would have replaced cash proffers, the amount developers pay per unit to get a rezoning approved, with impact fees, an amount per unit when a building permit is approved, regardless of rezoning.
Sen. […]

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The Virginia Trial Lawyers Association appears likely to get one of its principal legislative objectives for the year.
House Bill 172 allows plaintiffs’ attorneys to get the policy limits of a potential defendant before filing suit. The VTLA had to give a little, however. It accepted an amendment that would attorneys must give the insurer proof […]

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A hearing for Norfolk Circuit Judge Charles D. Griffith Jr. has been moved from tomorrow to March 3, when senators as well as delegates will participate.
Legislators had placed a hold on his appointment to a second term and gave him an opportunity to present his case for staying on the bench.
The earlier date was […]

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The Board of Visitors at the College of William and Mary announced in a statement this morning that President Gene Nichol had resigned following the board’s decision not to renew his contract.
Nichol also released a statement, noting that he will return to the faculty of the William and Mary law school.
Nichol’s 16-month tenure […]

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Plaintiffs’ attorneys would be able to get the policy limits of a potential defendant without filing suit under House Bill 172, which cleared the House Courts of Justice Committee Friday on a 19-3 vote.
Steven W. Pearson, a lobbyist for the Virginia Trial Lawyers Association, told the panel that the measure “will reduce unnecessary lawsuits” because […]

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Supreme Court Justice S. Bernard Goodwyn and Court of Appeals Judge LeRoy F. Millette Jr. won’t have a break in service after all.
Their appointments by Gov. Timothy M. Kaine would have expired tonight in the absence of action by the General Assembly, and they became the pawns in an assertion of institutional clout by Republicans […]

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The proposal to increase the mandatory retirement age for judges from 70 to 75 appears to be dead for the year.
The Courts of Justice Committees in both houses approved an increase, although the House committee lowered it to 73 in HB 783. However, on Monday the full House rejected the final draft of the bill. […]

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The train has been on the track for 20 years, but five members of the Senate Courts of Justice Committee didn’t think that was enough of a reason to make sure it stays there.
The issue is the ability of the nonlawyer staff of the Division of Child Support Enforcement to start the process against parents […]

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The First and Second Amendments to the U.S. Constitution seldom are as juxtaposed as they were today before the Senate Courts of Justice Committee.
The debate was over Senate Bill 529, carried for the Freedom of Information Advisory Council by Sen. R. Edward Houck, D-Spotsylvania. The bill was largely a response to the posting last year […]

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