A recent case from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, Richmond Division, held that an insurer’s underinsured motorist coverage limit totaled $500,000, effectively raising the total available coverage in connection to a motorcycle accident by $250,000. The UIM carrier had argued that its UM/UIM limit totaled only…
It is increasingly difficult for defendants to win at the demurrer stage in negligence cases in Virginia. A recent Virginia Supreme Court decision further eviscerated the power of the demurrer and confirmed the Court’s apparent change in direction on this issue, away from the requirement that Plaintiffs must allege proximate cause and…
Stan Wellman has a broad civil litigation practice, which includes the areas of transportation and trucking, premises and products liability, construction, day care, defamation, sexual abuse, admiralty, aviation, toxic tort,…
Elizabeth Skilling was born in Roanoke, Virginia in 1962. Elizabeth began her career in 1987 with McGuire, Woods, Battle & Boothe in Richmond, Virginia. She joined Harman Claytor in November…
Tom Garrett was born in Bedford, Virginia in 1968. His primary areas of concentration are insurance coverage litigation and civil litigation. Prior to joining the firm in 2006, he worked…
Mark Carlton was born in Roanoke, Virginia in 1972. Mark began his legal career as law clerk for the Circuit Court for the City of Norfolk. He joined Harman Claytor…
Unambiguous Anti-Stacking Language Until a year ago, the law on stacking uninsured and underinsured motorist coverages under a single policy insuring several vehicles was clear. In Goodville Mut. Cas. Co. v. Borror, 221 Va. 967, 275 S.E.2d 625 (1981) (“Borror”), the Virginia Supreme Court had held that it was “the rule in…
The general rule under Virginia law is that an insurer’s duty to defend arises when the complaint alleges facts and circumstances, some of which, if proved, fall within the risk covered by the Policy, Courts have often described this as an “eight corners” rule, which confines the inquiry concerning the duty to…