Brien Roche
Calling a plaintiff’s treating physician as a witness can be a problem. Under Virginia Code § 8.01-399 the doctor may be limited to testifying to what is in the treatment record. If the treating …
Brien Roche
John Doe actions in Virginia are normally limited to uninsured motorist (UM) cases. That is, if the at-fault motorist does not stop at the scene and therefore is not identified, then your suit may be …
Brien Roche
In a Virginia personal injury action, there may arise issues of the reasonableness of medical bills. Sometimes what the defense will do is to challenge reasonableness on the grounds that the bills are …
On occasion there arises an issue of the admissibility of pleadings. Virginia Code § 8.01-381 says that no pleading is to be carried from the courtroom by the jury. That means that a copy of the …
Brien Roche
Misnomers in Virginia can be troubling. Technically a misnomer is where you sued the correct person or entity but you simply misnamed them. For instance identifying a person by the wrong first name is simply a misnomer. Hampton …
Brien Roche
Chris Figueras of the D.C. Trial Lawyers Association in July of 2021 published to the membership a listing of various D.C. laws that are helpful. Also they are frequently used. Below is that listing. In …
Brien Roche
The so-called “modern view” says that defective original construction of a home which causes injury is actionable, provided the injuries from the work are foreseeable. No big surprise Virginia has rejected that. …
Brien Roche
Insurance defense lawyers are typically seasoned trial lawyers. They are also quite adept at taking depositions. They take a lot of depositions. Defense counsel tend to develop a routine. Among the defense bar there tend …
Brien Roche
Surveillance in personal injury cases is not quite as common as it used to be. It still is used by insurance carriers.
It’s a very dangerous defense tactic. It is fraught with deception. For …
Brien Roche
The U.S. Supreme Court established the concept of modern personal jurisdiction in International Shoe. However over the last several years the court has shifted gears on what are referred to as “general” and “specific jurisdiction” General …