Courts
Virginia joins push to break Google’s search monopoly
Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares has joined the U.S. Department of Justice and a coalition of 38 state attorneys general in proposing sweeping remedies to dismantle Google’s unlawful monopoly over internet search engines and restore competition in the digital marketplace. The push follows a landmark ruling in August 2024 by a federal district court in […]
Waynesboro voters sue to block election board’s potential refusal to certify 2024 results
Five Waynesboro voters have filed a lawsuit to prevent the majority of the Waynesboro Board of Elections from following through on their controversial pledge to refuse certification of the November 2024 election results, a move they argue would violate Virginia state law. The plaintiffs — Jennifer Lewis, Ann Criser-Shedd, Greg Fife, Chris Graham and Andrea […]
Waynesboro GOP officials sue over Va.’s voting system, threaten to block election certification
Two GOP officials from Waynesboro have filed a lawsuit challenging Virginia’s voting system ahead of the Nov. 5 presidential election while threatening to not certify the results. In their complaint, Curtis Lilly, the chairman of the Waynesboro Electoral Board, and Scott Mares, the board’s vice chair, are raising concerns about the validity of future results […]
Northern Virginia counselors challenge Virginia’s ban on conversion therapy
Two counselors from Northern Virginia, backed by lawyers with the conservative group The Family Foundation, are seeking to overturn the commonwealth’s ban on conversion therapy, a practice that attempts to change someone’s sexual orientation or gender identity. On Thursday, the Founding Freedoms Law Center, the legal division of the Family Foundation, announced it filed a […]
Federal court weighs appeal in voter disenfranchisement case
Federal judges in the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals in Richmond on Tuesday appeared sympathetic to the plaintiffs in a case challenging Virginia’s disenfranchisement of people with felony convictions. After a federal district judge allowed the challenge to move forward earlier this year, alleging that Virginia has been out of compliance with a Reconstruction-era federal […]
Brown Grove residents’ case against Wegmans, Hanover County to get new review in appellate court
A years-long legal battle has entered a new chapter as residents of Brown Grove, a historically Black neighborhood in Hanover County, and a neighboring subdivision, have filed their response as part of the appeal in their case against the county’s board of supervisors and Wegmans. Though the national grocery chain was granted approval by the […]
Virginia appeals court rules judge wrongly dismissed asset forfeiture challenge
A Virginia court erroneously ruled authorities could keep $35,293 seized from a Chesterfield County auto repair shop by setting the bar too high for the owner to prove the cash wasn’t connected to a crime, according to a state Court of Appeals opinion released this week. The case dealing with asset forfeiture laws centers on […]
U.S. appeals court agrees to block central part of new Title IX gender rules for schools
A federal appellate court has upheld blocking central parts of new Title IX rules from the Biden administration and granted an expedited hearing in October. A three-judge panel of the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals agreed Wednesday to block the rules from taking effect Aug. 1, shortly before most schools begin their academic year. The rules, […]
Va. court says lease agreements can’t override landlord’s duty to keep property ‘habitable’
In a case involving a flea infestation of an Alexandria rental, the Virginia Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday that lease agreements can’t override state law requiring that landlords keep their properties “in a fit and habitable condition.” Under the Virginia Residential Landlord Tenant Act, tenants must “take an active role in keeping the dwelling unit […]
Supreme Court won’t hear Thomas Jefferson admissions case
An admissions policy adopted by the Fairfax County School Board in 2020 to promote greater diversity at the elite Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology will remain in place after the U.S. Supreme Court opted not to take up a case challenging it brought forward by a coalition of parents. The court did […]
Va. appeals court says police stop of Black man in Waynesboro invasion case didn’t violate rights
In a reversal of an earlier decision, the Virginia Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday that an officer’s stop of two Black men in a Waynesboro neighborhood on suspicion of involvement in a home invasion that had just occurred had not violated one man’s rights against unreasonable seizure. In a majority opinion, Judge Lisa Lorish wrote […]
Va. Supreme Court backs fired teacher who refused to use transgender student’s pronouns
The Supreme Court of Virginia on Thursday reversed a lower court’s decision by reinstating a lawsuit brought by a former West Point High School teacher after he was fired for refusing to refer to a transgender student by his requested pronouns. Peter Vlaming, a former high school French teacher, refused to use male pronouns to […]