Sign In
Free Newsletter
Altria settles 6,000 Juul-related lawsuits for $235M
Henrico County-based Altria Group Inc. has settled at least 6,000 state and federal lawsuits related to Juul Labs Inc. for $235 million, the Fortune 500 tobacco manufacturer announced Wednesday. The settlements will be paid in the second quarter of 2023. Altria purchased a 35% stake in e-cigarette company Juul for $12.8 billion in 2018. Months […]
Resetting the bar
Two venerable Virginia law firms — Roanoke’s Woods Rogers PLC and Norfolk’s Vandeventer Black LLP — combined forces in July 2022, creating the state’s fifth largest firm, Woods Rogers Vandeventer Black PLC, based in Roanoke. It‘s a true statewide firm, with branch offices in Norfolk, Richmond, Lynchburg and Charlottesville, in addition to locations in Kitty […]
D.C. AG’s office sues Snyder, Commanders, NFL
Washington, D.C., Attorney General Karl Racine announced on Twitter Thursday afternoon that his office is suing the Washington Commanders team, owner Dan Snyder, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and the National Football League, accusing the defendants of “colluding to deceive District residents … about an investigation into toxic workplace culture,” referring to the NFL’s 20[...]
Genworth insurance co. settles class action for $25M
Richmond-based Genworth Life & Annuity Insurance Co. has settled a class-action lawsuit with 13,400 insurance policy holders for $25 million. U.S. District Judge David Novak of the Eastern District of Virginia approved the settlement Monday. GLAIC, a subsidiary of Fortune 500 life, mortgage and long-term care insurer Genworth Financial Inc., was sued for $5 billion […]
D.C. sues bitcoin whale Michael Saylor for tax fraud
MicroStrategy Inc. founder Michael Saylor was sued in August by the city of Washington, D.C., which alleges that he defrauded the nation’s capital of more than $25 million in income taxes. The lawsuit argues that Saylor falsely claimed to reside in Virginia or Florida while instead living in a luxury Georgetown penthouse. The civil suit, filed […]
Bitcoin whale Michael Saylor accused of tax fraud
Tysons-based MicroStrategy Inc. Executive Chairman Michael Saylor is being sued by the city of Washington, D.C., which accuses Saylor of engaging in a fraudulent scheme to deprive the city of more than $25 million in income taxes while living in “a luxury penthouse on the Georgetown waterfront” and claiming to be a resident of Virginia […]
McLean-based Appian wins $2B verdict in trade secrets lawsuit
Appian Corp., a cloud computing firm based in McLean, won $2.03 billion — an amount estimated to be the largest award in Virginia state court history — in a trade secrets verdict against a competitor Monday in Fairfax County Circuit Court. Appian sued Massachusetts-based Pegasystems Inc. and an individual, Youyong Zou, in May 2020, alleging […]
Judge dismisses Trigiani lawsuit against New Peoples Bank
A federal judge issued a summary judgment last week, dismissing all claims in former executive Mary Y. Trigiani’s lawsuit against Russell County-based New Peoples Bank for discrimination and wrongful termination. Trigiani’s complaints of a “cultlike office culture” did not hold up to judicial scrutiny, U.S. District Judge James P. Jones ruled. A Big Stone Gap […]
Former LeClair Ryan execs reach $10M settlement
Former executives at Richmond-based LeClair Ryan PLLC have reached a settlement with the firm’s insurer and bankruptcy trustee over $10 million in pending claims, according to a report from The American Lawyer. The firm’s liability insurer, Columbia Casualty, agreed to pay the firm’s trustee, Lynn Tavenner, $9.425 million to resolve claims including conspiracy and breach [&hellip[...]
Falwell revives Liberty defamation suit, wants personal items returned
Former Liberty University President and Chancellor Jerry Falwell Jr. has revived his defamation lawsuit against the Lynchburg-based private Christian university that is suing him for $10 million, according to court documents filed in late October. Falwell also seeks the return of personal property he says is being held by the university, including a .38 revolver, […]
Caution ahead
This year was expected to be a rough one for employers, following predictions of a coming tidal wave of costly employee lawsuits and labor complaints powered by the COVID-19 pandemic and last year’s racial justice protests. So far, though, that onslaught of litigation hasn’t materialized. Why not? Partly because the pandemic itself closed courts for […]
UPDATED: Liberty University files $10M suit against Falwell
Liberty University has sued Jerry Falwell Jr. for $10 million, accusing the former president and chancellor of the Lynchburg-based Christian university of breach of contract and fiduciary duty. The suit alleges that Falwell negotiated a salary increase and larger severance package in his 2019 contract while not disclosing to the university’s executive committee his entanglement […]
