Court Opinions in Cases of our Lawyers
Centra Health Inc. t/a Lynchburg General Hospital v. Mullins
Joshua Silverman and Carolyn Lavecchia filed an amicus curiae brief in the Virginia Supreme Court in this landmark medical malpractice case. The Virginia Supreme Court held that a plaintiff in a medical malpractice case can pursue damages for both personal injuries that did not cause the patient’s death (survivorship) and sue for wrongful death damages.
Mayfield-Brown v. Sayegh (Virginia Supreme Court)
Tom Williamson prevailed in this important medical malpractice case involving Eastern Virginia Medical School physicians. The defendant is an obstetrician-gynecologist who claimed that she could not be sued for medical malpractice under the doctrine of charitable immunity. The Virginia Supreme Court rejected her claims of charitable immunity.
Riverside Hospital v. Johnson (2006)
Joshua Silverman co-authored an amicus curiae (“friend of the court”) brief in this Virginia Supreme Court case holding that a hospital’s incident report is not privileged. The case involved a patient who fell at Riverside Hospital and sustained a hip fracture. The jury returned a verdict of $1,000,000 for the plaintiff.
Virginia Birth-Related Neurological Injury Compensation Program v. Williamson
We prevailed on an appeal against the Commonwealth of Virginia on behalf of child catastrophically injured at birth. The Commonwealth had refused to supply her with a generator to maintain her life sustaining ventilator during power outages.
Chandler v. Graffeo (Virginia Supreme Court 2004)
Josh Silverman filed a successful amicus curiae brief (“friend of the court”) on behalf of the plaintiff in this important medical malpractice case.
Bates v. Commonwealth of Virginia
In a wrongful death action against the Commonwealth of Virginia under the Virginia Tort Claims Act, a notice of claim naming a university medical center was sufficient to comply with the requirements of Code Ã?§ 8.01-195.6 for identification of the “place” where the injury was alleged to have occurred. The trial court erred in sustaining a plea of sovereign immunity and dismissing the claim with prejudice. The judgment is reversed and the case is remanded for further proceedings.
Brooks v. Loehman's Inc. (Virginia Supreme Court 2001)
Tom Williamson successfully argued to the Virginia Supreme Court that a business owner is liable for a customer’s injury although the owner had no notice of a dangerous condition if the owner’s employee indirectly caused the condition.
Johnson v. Raviotta (Virginia Supreme Court 2002)
In this successful appeal to the Virginia Supreme Court, Tom Williamson and Carolyn Lavecchia argued that medical malpractice defendants cannot use habit evidence to destroy the protection afforded by the Deadman’s Statute to the estate of deceased patients.
Didato v. Strehler, Virginia Supreme Court (2001)
Tom Williamson successfully argued that a pediatrician may owe parents the duty to inform the parents about a child’s genetic information to assist the parents in making informed decisions about future child bearing.
Vaughan, Adm'r v. Southside Cardiology Associates, P.C., Virginia Supreme Court
Carolyn Lavecchia successfully argued to the Virginia Supreme Court that in a medical malpractice action the defendant can not introduce into evidence his past habit of complying with the standard of care to prove that he was not negligent in a pending medical malpractice case.
Ayers v. Mosby, Virginia Supreme Court (1998)
A decision detailing what is necessary to prove a document was signed because of fraud or undue influence.
Lee v. Bourgeois, Virginia Supreme Court (1996)
Physicians practicing at state operated medical schools are not immune from liability for the medical malpractice of residents assisting in the care of the physicians’ patients.
Crone v. Richmond Newspapers, Inc. Virginia Supreme Court
Tom Williamson successfully argued before the Virginia Supreme Court that newspaper distributors were franchisees of the newspaper publisher entitled to protection under the Retail Franchise Act.
McMunn v. Tatum, Virginia Supreme Court
This frequently cited dental malpractice case determined what an expert witness can tell a jury about the data the expert has relied upon in forming his opinions.
Gray v. Graham, Virginia Supreme Court
Tom Williamson won his brain injured client’s case by persuading the court to admit into evidence statements made by a man who died before trial who was the only witness that could identify the defendant.
VEPCO v. Winesett, Virginia Supreme Court
The Virginia Supreme Court affirms a verdict in favor of the estate of a man electrocuted because of the negligent failure of the utility to trim trees growing into its power lines.