Where an insurance policy provided coverage to affiliates of the Episcopal Church, that policy extended to a breakaway parish that is embroiled in litigation against the diocese. Nothing in the master policy suggested the insurance company has the duty—or the ...
Read More »Insurance – Coverage can’t be denied to breakaway parish
Civil Practice – Opioid-related suit to remain in federal court 
Where Arlington County sued a host of opioid manufacturers, distributors and pharmacies in state court for causing, or contributing to, the opioid epidemic in the county, two subcontractors properly removed the suit to federal court. Their operation of a government ...
Read More »Labor/Employment – Nuclear agency immune from whistleblower suit 
Although the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, or NRC, is obligated to not retaliate against whistleblowers, because the statute allows suits against a “person,” and the NRC is not a “person,” the NRC was immune from a whistleblower suit. Background Dr. Michael ...
Read More »Criminal Practice – Convictions for drug-related deaths reversed 
Where the record was “too meager” to render a proper ruling on the defendants’ claims that their due process rights were violated when the government failed to disclose and preserve the decedent’s cellphone, the convictions for distributing heroin that resulted ...
Read More »Labor/Employment – Reassignment backs failure-to-accommodate suit 
In a case of first impression, the court held that where an employer transfers an employee from a position they could perform if provided with reasonable accommodations to a position they do not want, that could support a failure-to-accommodate claim. ...
Read More »Criminal Practice – Hobbs Act robbery not ‘crime of violence’ under guidelines 
Where Hobbs Act robbery reaches the use of force or threats of force against property, while the guidelines’ definition of “crime of violence” requires the use of force or threats of force against persons, there is no categorical match. Consequently, ...
Read More »Immigration – Immigration judges may grant waivers of inadmissibility 
Where a man challenged an immigration judge’s denial of a waiver of inadmissibility so he could apply for a U visa, federal regulations allow immigration judges, or IJs, to “take any action consistent with their authorities … that is appropriate ...
Read More »Bankruptcy – Bankruptcy fees amendment is constitutional 
Although a 2017 amendment to the bankruptcy fees provisions may render it more expensive for some debtors in Virginia—as opposed to North Carolina or Alabama—to go through Chapter 11 proceedings, because the difference is a byproduct of Virginia’s use of ...
Read More »Tort/Negligence – No evidence of prolonged exposure to asbestos 
Where the record did not show the decedent had frequent, regular and proximate contact with a company’s asbestos insulation, the company prevailed on the wrongful death claims. Background After Charles F. Connor died at the age of 90 of mesothelioma, ...
Read More »Immigration – Removal not prevented by pardon of underlying conviction 
Where a native of Ghana was pardoned for aggravated felony, drug and firearm offenses, the pardon waiver of removability is limited to the grounds listed in the statute, which does not extend to controlled substance and firearm convictions. The order ...
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