Recent Articles from All Practice Groups
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Virginia Court of Appeals Rules that Statements Made by Decedent to His Heirs About the Cause of His Fall at a Hospital Were Sufficiently Collaborated by Statements Made to Disinterested Witnesses to be Admissible Under the Dead Man’s Statute
In Bon Secours-DePaul Med. Ctr., Inc. v. Rogakos-Russell, No. 1134-22-1, 2023 WL 7134822 (Va. Ct. App. Oct. 31, 2023), Father Constantine Rogakos, a Greek Orthodox priest, died after falling in an ultrasound examination room. His Estate sued and at trial, the evidence established that Father Rogakos was elderly and had difficulty standing and walking ... Read More
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Upcoming Class: Tort Damages in the District of Columbia 2024
Crystal S. Deese, chair of Jackson & Campbell P.C.'s Health Law Practice Group, will be teaching an upcoming virtual class on Tort Damages in the District of Columbia 2023 for the D.C. Bar Continuing Legal Education Program. The class will take place on Tuesday, December 12, 2023, from 6:00 p.m. – 9:15 p.m and will be worth 3.0 credit ... Read More
Best Law Firms® 2023 Rankings
A number of Jackson & Campbell, P.C.’s practice groups received national and metro rankings in the Fourteenth Edition of the Best Law Firms® rankings. As a firm, we strive for excellence in our work and are very proud to be recognized as a part of this elite group ... Read More
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Upcoming Webinar: The Economics of Law Firm Ownership
Arthur D. Burger will be participating on a webinar panel with George Mason University Law School on October 20 from 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm on the topic of ownership of law firms. Investment in litigation by third parties — i.e., when neither the litigants nor lawyers on contingency are the primary funders for a case (often labelled “Third Party Litigation ... Read More
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Corporate Transparency Act: What Business Owners Need to Know
The Corporate Transparency Act, which goes into effect on January 1, 2024, has sweeping ramifications for small businesses and their owners. This articles offers a primer on the Act’s reporting requirements, exceptions, and penalties for non-compliance. Read more here ... Read More
TAGGED: #CorporateTransparencyAct #CTA
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Blue Book Rules Seminar for the DC Bar
Crystal Deese, Director of J&C’s Health Law Practice Group, is teaching a one hour seminar on the Blue Book rules today for the DC Bar at noon. The course is a refresher from your first year law school curriculum and she tries to keep the dry material entertaining. Register for the webinar and find the course details here ... Read More
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Maryland Employers – Requirement To Establish Retirement Savings Program
In recognition of the advantages of employees establishing retirement savings accounts, with few exceptions, Maryland employers (including non-profits) are now required to establish a payroll deposit retirement program for employees and must file an annual certification of compliance every December 1. Employers could offer 401(k), SEP or Simple IRA, or similar programs, but, fortunately, the State of Maryland ... Read More
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Simply Owning or Renting a Home in DC May Subject You to DC Income Tax
D.C. Simply Owning or Renting a Home in DC May Subject You to DC Income Tax (regardless of whether you live outside DC for the majority of the year) – Statutory Residency in the District of Columbia As a general proposition, States tend to impose their income taxes on people who reside within the state or who ... Read More
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Court of Appeals of Virginia holds private easement not a public dedication.
The Court of Appeals of Virginia affirmed a summary judgment grant finding that language included in a subdivision plat did not create a public easement. In Salunkhe v. Christopher Customs, LLC, the Court held that language stating, “24’ Ingress-Egress Esm’t” and “35’ Rad. Turnaround Esm’t” failed to satisfy the Virginia Code requirements to create ... Read More
TAGGED: #RealEstateLaw, #DCRealEstate, #VARealEstate
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The Best Lawyers in America 2024
Jackson & Campbell, P.C. is pleased to announce a number of our Directors have been named to The Best Lawyers in America© 2024 Edition. Congratulations to: Arthur D. Burger (2015) - Ethics and Professional Responsibility Law Christopher ... Read More
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Supreme Court of Maryland has clarified how public roads are established
In Board of County Commissioners v. Aiken, the Supreme Court of Maryland has clarified how public roads are established, recognizing that its prior case law “has caused confusion.” The Court agreed with the Appellate Court of Maryland’s “well-reasoned analysis and affirm[ed] its judgment in all respects.” The Appellate Court’s decision was discussed here in August, 2022. At issue ... Read More
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Real Estate Loan Drafting Guidance: District of Columbia
We're sharing a Q&A guide to real estate finance law and practice for borrowers and lenders in the District of Columbia. This guide can be used in conjunction with the Real Estate Finance State Q&A. It addresses state customs and laws relating to loan document drafting to ensure enforceability and priority of the lien of mortgage instruments. It also generally ... Read More
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Appellate Court of Maryland confirms an “easement to nowhere” is terminated.
The Appellate Court of Maryland has confirmed that an “easement to nowhere,” if it existed, may be terminated by estoppel and adverse possession. In Holder v. Uncle Eddie’s Brokedown Palace, LLC, the Court examined an express easement which included purported rights to traverse lands not owned by the servient estate and how the conveyed rights, if any, may be terminated. In Holder, Justin Young ... Read More
TAGGED: #realestatelaw #DCrealestate
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Navigating High Interest Rates: The Power of Qualified Personal Residence Trusts in Estate Planning
On May 3, 2023, the Federal Reserve raised interest rates, this time to a range between 5% and 5.25%. It marked the tenth increase since March 2022. As rates continue to rise, estate planning strategies must shift to take advantage of these new economic conditions. One such tactic is the Qualified Personal Residence Trust (QPRT). A QPRT is ... Read More
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Vermont Extends Assisted Suicide Law to Nonresidents
In a precedent-setting move, Vermont has become the first state in the U.S. to amend its assisted suicide law, extending its provisions to terminally ill nonresidents. Signed into law by Republican Governor Phil Scott on May 2, 2023, the legislation removes the decades-old residency requirement, demonstrating a significant shift in the nation's approach to end-of-life care. This ... Read More
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Security Deposit Requirements for DC Residential Leases
The District of Columbia, with its rich history of protecting the rights of tenants, has strict rules governing security deposits on residential leases. Landlords who manage their own properties and professional managers should be familiar with these rules. Limitations on the amount of the security deposit. The deposit shall not exceed ... Read More
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Arthur D. Burger will participate in a CLE Class called “Attorney Fees and Ethics” on May 25, 2023
Arthur D. Burger, Chair of Jackson & Campbell’s Professional Responsibility Group, will be participating in a CLE presentation of the National Association of Legal Fee Analysis (“NALFA”) on the topic of “Attorney Fees and Ethics” on May 25, 2023 in Chicago. For more information on the conference, visit: NALFA - Specializing in Attorney Fees and Legal Billing. ... Read More
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Massachusetts Appeals Court Rules That Insured Is Entitled to Recover Costs In Bringing Coverage Suit Against Insurer
In John Moriarty & Assocs., Inc. v. Zurich Am. Ins. Co., No. 22-P-275, 2023 WL 2719362 (Mass. App. Ct. Mar. 31, 2023), the Massachusetts Appeals Court for Middlesex County vacated a lower court’s dismissal of Zurich American Insurance Co (“Zurich”) from a declaratory judgment action brought by John Moriarty & Associates, Inc. (“JMA”), a ... Read More
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Massachusetts High Court: Abuse Exclusion Requires Imbalance or Misuse of Power Attendant to Physically Harmful Conduct
In a March 16, 2023 decision, the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts concluded that an abuse exclusion in a homeowners’ policy was inapplicable to an unprovoked attack by an insured . The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court again considered whether, under the terms of a homeowners’ insurance policy, conduct by an insured constituted “physical abuse” within the terms ... Read More
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Louisiana Federal Court Holds No Coverage for Oil Spill Based on Insured’s Late Notice and Applicability of the Policy’s Pollution Exclusion
In Jaxon Energy, LLC v. Admiral Insurance Company, No. CV 22-940, 2023 WL 2499135 (E.D. La. Mar. 14, 2023), the United District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, applying New York law, granted summary judgment to Admiral Insurance Company (“Admiral”) upon finding that the insured, Jaxon Energy LLC (“Jaxon”), failed to provide notice within the timeframe required by its ... Read More
TAGGED: insurance law
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Condo Association Took Proper Disciplinary Action
On February 16, 2023, the D.C. Court of Appeals upheld a decision that a condominium association’s failure to precisely comply with certain provisions of its bylaws may not deprive a member of due process rights. In Rayner v. Yale Steam Laundry Condo. Ass’n, No. 21-VA-122 & 22-CV-58 (D.C. Cir. Feb. 16, 2023), the Association issued a written notice for a hearing ... Read More
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Arthur D. Burger to present at 2023 MWELA Annual Conference
Arthur D. Burger, chair of Jackson & Campbell’s Professional Responsibility Group, will make a presentation at the Annual Meeting of the Metropolitan Employment Lawyers Association (“MWELA”) on March 3, 2023 on the topic of Ethics in Fee-Shifting cases at The Mayflower Hotel. For more details and to register, visit here. ... Read More
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The Supreme Court of Virginia has reversed a trial court and upheld a prescriptive easement where the issue of permission was hotly contested in Kevin Horn v. James Webb
The Supreme Court of Virginia has reversed a trial court and upheld a prescriptive easement where the issue of permission was hotly contested. In Kevin Horn v. James Webb, the Court examined the issue of whether prescriptive rights could arise from a pre-1976 grant of permission by the servient estate which was never expressly ... Read More
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A Fond Farewell to Times New Roman: DEI Committees Recommend Changing to a Sans Serif for Accessibility
In May of 2020, Jackson & Campbell adopted a new policy for all firm communications: it replaced Times New Roman font with Calibri, a more accessible and easier-to-read font. If high-tech scanners had trouble reading Times New Roman font, chances were that some of the people reading our communications also found difficulty in reading that font. Earlier this ... Read More
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District of Columbia Court of Appeals clarifies public easement rules
The District of Columbia Court of Appeals has clarified a pair of rulings from 1896 and 1899 as to how public easements may be accepted. In Kalorama Citizens Association v. SunTrust Bank Company, the Court held that a public easement, such as the disputed open plaza being used by vendors for a farmers’ market, ... Read More
TAGGED: #realestatelaw #DCrealestate
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Jackson & Campbell attorneys Arthur D. Burger and Caroline Lee-Ghosal to teach D.C. Bar CLE on legal ethics on March 15, 2023.
On March 15, Arthur D. Burger and Caroline Lee-Ghosal will teach a D.C. Bar CLE course on legal ethics issues. This course, a follow-up to one they taught in 2022, provides commentary on a series of video vignettes that present fact scenarios for ethical dilemmas that lawyers often face. The course will be presented in-person and will also be available through ... Read More
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Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Declines to Find Common-Law Duty for Insurer to Cover Mitigation Costs
In Ken’s Foods, Inc. v. Steadfast Insurance Co, Case No. SJC-13303 (Mass. Jan. 6, 2023), the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts issued an opinion holding that there is no common law duty for insurers to cover mitigation costs incurred by an insured when the terms of the policy at issue are unambiguous and do not provide for such coverage. The ... Read More
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Colorado Federal Court Finds No Coverage Under Claims-Made Policies After Insured’s Late Notice of Underlying Lawsuits
In National Union Fire Insurance Co. of Pittsburgh, PA v. Estate of Stephen Calendine DDS et al., No. 21-cv-1541, 2022 WL 17486796 (D. Colo. Dec. 7, 2022), the United District Court for Colorado held that the insured failed to meet the notice requirements of his two claims-made and reported policies and that the notice-prejudice ... Read More
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Georgia Federal Court: General Liability Policy’s Pollution Exclusion Bars Coverage for Claims Arising from Discharge of PFAS into Waterways
In a December 5, 2022 decision, the Northern District of Georgia determined that a total pollution exclusion in a commercial general liability policy precluded coverage for damages arising out of the discharge of PFAS chemicals into waterways. Read more here ... Read More
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Maryland and Virginia appellate courts issue decisions on statutory interpretation
In the Maryland case of Elsberry v. Stanley Martin Companies, LLC, the purchasers of a single-family home in Charles County filed suit alleging that the seller improperly imposed an amortized water and sewer charge for a period of thirty years after the date of the initial sale. The homeowners filed suit contending that Md. Code Real Prop. § 14-117 ... Read More
TAGGED: #realestatelaw #DCrealestate