Four published opinions from the Court of Appeals, but first a word a about an unpublished one
The Court of Appeals issued just four published opinion over the last three weeks -- as many as were released on April 2 of this year....
John S. Koehler
Apr 28, 202410 min read
You always remember your first time . . .
This week, the same day that I was in Norfolk presenting an argument to the Court of Appeals of Virginia, I received the mandate...
John S. Koehler
Aug 11, 20232 min read
A New Location -- Same Old, Same Old
The Virginia Appellate Lawyer's Court of Appeals Blawg has a new home. The content from the former website has been transferred and the...
John S. Koehler
Oct 31, 20221 min read
One Published Decision — Can you be actually innocent of a crime you weren’t convicted of?
Editorial Comment: Today we have a classic example of how the American Criminal Justice System can ensnare people — both the guilty and...
John S. Koehler
Aug 24, 20227 min read
An Appellate Lawyer Goes to Trial . . . That Sounds Mental (and it is)
Today I second-chaired a criminal trial. Why was an appellate lawyer doing real lawyer work? Well, primarily because in this case (and...
John S. Koehler
Aug 10, 20227 min read
Oral Argument the Way it Was Meant to Be
This is a long post which, as a true pedant, I naturally started with some history that is mostly irrelevant to the story (but darn...
tloojs
Jul 15, 20228 min read
Introducing the Icarus Index
Readers of the Blawg of the Sage of Virginia Beach are familiar with the David-Goliath Index in which Steve Emmert reports of the...
tloojs
Jul 8, 20224 min read
Three New Appellate Judges for Virginia
The Virginia General Assembly on Friday elected two judges as new justices on the Supreme Court of Virginia. Virginia Court of Appeals...
tloojs
Jun 19, 20222 min read
Court of Appeals Schedules First Oral Arguments in Appeals Filed in 2022 . . . But It’s Not Bi
The Court of Appeals will hear oral argument for the first time in an appeal filed after the expansion of the Court’s jurisdiction on...
tloojs
May 10, 20221 min read
One for the Win Column
I remember the invasion of Grenada being described as “knocking over a fruit stand with an aircraft carrier.” Well, today I had my first...
tloojs
Apr 20, 20221 min read
New Kid on the Blawg Block
I am pleased to report that my one-time Supreme Court of Virginia Law Clerk colleague John O’Herron has started his own Virginia...
tloojs
Apr 6, 20221 min read
Nearly back to Normal
Today the Supreme Court of Virginia held its first in-person writ panel since in the COVID endemic era — I believe that for the present...
tloojs
Apr 6, 20223 min read
Some days you eat the bear, and some days the bear eats you
Elwin Charles “Preacher” Roe was a baseball player from Ash Flat, Arkansas. His major league career spanned 16 years in the mid-20th...
tloojs
Feb 17, 20224 min read
Court of Appeals Sends 2021 Out with More of a Whimper than a Bang
With only one published opinion today and nary an unpublished opinion, the Court of Appeals of Virginia is sending 2021 out with more of...
tloojs
Dec 29, 20213 min read
Three Criminal Appeals From the Court of Appeals: One defendant wins her appeal for a second time, t
Following your humble correspondent’s first appearance as an advocate before the Supreme Court of Virginia this morning, his schedule has...
tloojs
Nov 10, 20215 min read
An Award You Have to Pay For is Advertising; Advertising You Have to Pay For and Provide Prospects i
So today I received my very first “vanity award” notification. If you are not familiar with the term “vanity award,” its basically...
tloojs
Oct 14, 20211 min read
OCD, but not too OCD
Just a short observation: If I was as obsessive about proofreading these posts as I am about correcting them when I am reading them after...
tloojs
Jun 6, 20211 min read
Half a loaf . . .
The saying “half a loaf is better than none” sometimes applies in the law, but it depends on which half of the loaf you get. Yesterday...
tloojs
Jun 5, 20212 min read
File this under “Go to Language for Every Appeal Where the Standard is Abuse of Discreation
I try to stay in my lane of summarizing and commenting on Virginia Court of Appeals’ opinions, leaving the commentary on the Mighty Seven...
tloojs
Jun 3, 20212 min read
I send a lot of emails . . .
I send a lot of emails. I don’t mean that I personally send a lot to friends and family — my output in that region is pretty slim as we...
tloojs
May 19, 20212 min read