Yesterday, the Court of Appeals issued its first published opinion in three weeks. Today, Governor Northam signed into law Senate Bill 1261, the legislation that will expand the jurisdiction of the Court of Appeals and make all appeals to the Court by right (rather...
Dear readers, it had to happen someday. After avoiding darkening the door of the Roanoke City Circuit Court in January, by reaching a settlement ten minutes before the hearing, in what would have been my first courtroom appearance since retiring from government...
Toni Sue Stacey v. Commonwealth of Virginia addresses an issue that is normally confined to the general district courts and which is, perhaps ungraciously given the deep emotions that are often involved, colloquially known as a “doggie death penalty case.” The...
Today is a red letter day for John S. Koehler, P.C. This morning I filed my first ever brief in the Supreme Court of Virginia -- and now some poor staff attorney (or maybe a law clerk) will have to read it. To that person I say, "Thanks for not laughing out loud."...
The lone published opinion from the Court of Appeals of Virginia today is Juan Luis Lopez v. Commonwealth of Virginia. What immediately caught my eye in this case before I was through the first paragraph was the nature of two of the charges against Mr. Lopez:...
Yes, there is an appellate law grapevine, and it was all abuzz yesterday from a reliable rumor that the expansion of the jurisdiction (and size) of the Court of Appeals of Virginia is all but a done deal. The unofficial word is that the legislation has or will soon...