7th Order Extending Declaration of Judicial Emergency

The 7th Order Extending Declaration of Judicial Emergency in Response to COVID-19 Emergency can be found here. The new date through which the extension applies is August 9, 2020. Included in the new Order is the following: Plans for restarting jury trials, as required by Paragraph 16 of the Sixth Order, shall be submitted by Chief Circuit Court Judges to the Chief Justice. Jury trials may be held as soon as the plan has been submitted and approved by a panel of three Justices in consultation with the Office of the Executive Secretary. No jury trials shall occur in any locality in the Commonwealth for the duration of this Order, unless and until the plan applicable to the locality has been approved by the panel. The tolling period as a result of the Judicial Emergency for such statutes of limitation and deadlines shall be limited to March 16, 2020 through July 19,...

Sixth Order Extending Declaration of Judicial Emergency In Response to Covid-19 Emergency entered by the Virginia Supreme Court

The Sixth Order Extending Declaration of Judicial Emergency In Response to Covid-19 Emergency entered by the Virginia Supreme Court was entered yesterday. Highlights are offered below.  You can review the entire Order here. The Declaration of Judicial Emergency is EXTENDED until July 19, 2020 Statutes of Limitations and case related deadlines (except for discovery deadlines) continue to be tolled during period of Judicial Emergency. While video conferencing and telephonic hearings are preferred, Courts may hear in-person non-emergency matters and non-jury cases if they determine it is safe to do so. Still not necessary for a party to obtain the agreement of any other party to bring a pre-trial motion before the court set a non-jury trial. Facemasks required Continuances and excuses for failure to appear shall be liberally granted for reasons resulting from impact of Covid-19 Jury trials remain suspended and no jury trials shall take place for the duration of this Order. Jury trials after July 19 are subject to a further period of suspension if the Declaration of Judicial Emergency is extended. Judge Lemons has appointed a Task Force to address the reinstatement of jury trials in the...

Is a defendant’s obligation to satisfy a verdict affected by a plaintiff’s pretrial settlement with their UIM carrier?

Written by Matthew Liller, Esq. Edited by Bill Pfund, Esq. The Supreme Court of Virginia recently clarified that a plaintiff who reaches a pretrial settlement with their underinsured motorist (“UIM”) carrier is still entitled to receive the full amount of a subsequent jury verdict from the defendant. Llewellyn v. White, 297 Va. 588 (2019). In Llewellyn, the plaintiff was seriously injured in an automobile accident. The plaintiff had $1 million in UIM coverage, while the defendant had $250,000 in liability coverage. Prior to trial, the plaintiff settled her potential claims against her UIM carrier for $750,000. A release of all claims was given to the UIM carrier only, and the UIM carrier agreed to waive subrogation. The then went to trial and the jury awarded plaintiff $1.5 million in damages against the defendant. The defendant moved to reduce the verdict and apply Virginia’s statutory offset from the plaintiff’s $750,000 settlement with the UIM carrier, meaning she would only be responsible for the $750,000 difference. Va. Code § 8.01-35.1 provides, in pertinent part, that when a release is given to one of two or more persons liable for the same injury, any amount recovered against the other person(s) shall be reduced by the amount stipulated by the release. The trial court declined to reduce the verdict. The Supreme Court of Virginia first determined that a UIM carrier is not a “person liable for the same injury,” as its obligation to pay arises only from contract, not from tort. The jury found that the defendant failed to exercise ordinary care, and that failure caused the plaintiff to suffer personal injuries. Because...