Virginia

On February 13, 2014, in Bostic v. Rainey, Judge Arenda L. Wright Allen of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia ruled that any Virginia laws banning same-sex marriage or prohibiting recognition of same-sex marriages – including Article I, Section 15-A of the Virginia Constitu

In Assurance Data, Inc. v. John Malyevac, No. 121989 (Sept. 12, 2013), the Supreme Court of Virginia held that the Fairfax County Circuit Court had been too quick to rule on the enforceability of a covenant not to compete, reversing the court’s dismissal of the employer’s complaint and remanding the

Virginia has enacted two new laws that are intended to enhance employee protections, particularly during union organizing drives in the Commonwealth. One law guarantees the right to vote in a secret ballot election. The other law limits those situations in which an employer may be required to disclo

The Virginia Supreme Court has spoken again on the calculation of damages in a complex employment contract case. In Online Resources Corp. v. Lawlor, No. 120208 (Va. Jan. 10, 2013), the court addressed the expert qualifications required for the valuation of equity following the termination of the ch

Non-compete restrictions are creations of state law, which can sometimes vary on key aspects of contract formation and enforceability. One of those aspects is the extent to which states will reform or "blue pencil" the language of the restrictions. In many states a court will rewrite the terms of th

In Preferred Systems Solutions, Inc. v. GP Consulting, LLC, Nos. 11906, 11907 (Sept. 14, 2012), the Supreme Court of Virginia, for the first time, defined how to calculate damages for the breach of a noncompete provision where the breach resulted in the loss of an expected contract

In VanBuren v. Grubb, No. 120348 (Nov. 1, 2012), a sharply divided Supreme Court of Virginia surprised employers by holding that a common law tort action for wrongful discharge in violation of public policy may be brought against an individual manager or supervisor.

In a case of first impression, the Virginia Supreme Court has ruled that supervisors and managers can be held individually liable for public policy wrongful discharge under Virginia common law. In VanBuren v. Grubb, No. 120348 (Nov. 1, 2012), the Court held that a former employee of a medical practi

In a recent Virginia trade secrets case, the appellate court’s ruling illustrates that in any case for damages, the manner and measure of valuation is paramount. In 21st Century Systems, Inc. v. Perot Systems Government Services, Inc., a Virginia jury awarded Perot Systems Government Services, Inc.

Finding a non-compete provision in an employment agreement overbroad on its face and therefore unenforceable, the Supreme Court of Virginia has affirmed dismissal of an employer’s breach of contract claim against a former employee. Home Paramount Pest Control Cos., Inc. v. Shaffer, 2011 Va. LEXIS

In Home Paramount Pest Control Cos. v. Shaffer, No. 101837, 2011 Va. LEXIS 222 (Nov. 4, 2011), the Virginia Supreme Court ruled that a covenant not to compete was overbroad and unenforceable, even though it was identical to a covenant the court had upheld 22 years earlier in Paramount Termite Contro

An at-will employee must show a customer used “improper methods” beyond merely “actions solely motivated by spite, ill will and malice” to prove her employer’s primary customer tortiously interfered with her employment contract, the Virginia Supreme Court has ruled. The Court reversed a ju