One of the oldest legal systems in the United States, Virginia has a comprehensive set of court rules. The state Supreme Court and the Court of Appeals of Virginia review appeals from District and Circuit courts.
Civil disputes arise from a wide variety of topics, including personal injury and employment. A skilled Virginia civil litigation attorney could help you resolve your dispute.
Complaints
The Virginia Civil Lawyers Disciplinary Board and the Office of Disciplinary Counsel have jurisdiction to investigate complaints concerning violations of the Rules of Professional Conduct and to hold hearings. Both the Board and the office are funded by The West Virginia State Bar from fees paid by its members.
Any person who suffers a quantifiable financial loss as the result of dishonest conduct of a licensed Virginia attorney or someone posing as an attorney may file a complaint with the Virginia State Bar. The Bar’s Clients’ Protection Fund reimburses clients for such losses, and it also has a Fee Dispute Resolution Program that helps resolve conflicts without a lawsuit.
The Virginia State Bar’s Executive Director shall notify any attorney who fails to pay the fees he is obligated to pay. If fees are not paid within six months of the date of notice, the Executive Director shall remove the attorney’s name from the list of persons qualified to practice law in this Commonwealth and shall notify the clerk of the Supreme Court of Virginia of such removal.
Pretrial Conferences
Often, as a result of filing your “Not Guilty” plea in a misdemeanor case or your request for a continuance in a civil case, you will be scheduled to have a pretrial conference with the City Attorney. The purpose of the pretrial conference is to discuss your case and attempt to resolve it without going to trial.
A pretrial conference is a type of hearing that helps the judge establish managerial control of a case, discourage wasteful pretrial activities and improve the quality of the trial by thorough preparation. It is normally held after all initial pleadings have been filed.
At a pretrial conference the prosecutor discloses to you or your lawyer all the evidence that they intend to introduce at trial. They must also disclose any expert witnesses they intend to call and rough drafts of jury instructions. The judge will also identify issues that require a trial and set a tentative trial date.
Trials
A Virginia civil litigation attorney could help individuals and businesses navigate a variety of legal issues related to commercial disputes. These include issues with shareholder agreements, disagreements with vendors and customers, conflicts involving mergers and acquisitions, and problems associated with dissolutions.
In addition to guiding business clients through the litigation process, an attorney might also assist with the negotiation and settlement of business disputes. This might involve disputes arising from the breach of a contract, fraud and misrepresentation, infringement on intellectual property rights, unfair competition, and more.
He has extensive experience representing corporate and individual clients in complex civil litigation matters in state courts throughout the Commonwealth, as well as federal court. He is particularly adept at tackling cases in the Eastern District of Virginia, often known as the “Rocket Docket.” He regularly handles matters that arise from contracts, statutory liens, commercial real estate transactions, ERISA and government benefits, employment, construction, toxic tort, and federally protected whistleblower matters.
Appeals
Whether you are seeking to bring an appeal or defending against one, a seasoned Virginia civil litigation attorney could help. A seasoned appellate attorney understands the appeals process and the rules of procedure in the Court of Appeals of Virginia and Supreme Court.
Graham Bryant recently authored an article discussing how legislative changes and recent judicial decisions have increased availability of interlocutory appeals, a powerful litigation tool that can prevent unnecessary trial expense by allowing appellate review of a dispositive issue long before the trial court issues its final order. He presented this article at the 2021 Appellate Summit hosted by the VBA and published it in the VBA’s On Appeal publication.
Elbert Lin is an experienced trial and appellate attorney who defends a broad range of clients in state and federal courts across the country. He has successfully argued more than 50 cases before state and federal appellate courts and federal en banc courts of appeals, including the U.S. Supreme Court.