February 27, 2025, opinions

Unpublished per curiam (Graves, Willett, Wilson), criminal Affirming conviction of possession of a firearm by a felon. Richman, J. (Stewart, Richman, Haynes), criminal, sufficiency of evidence Affirming conviction of making a false statement to a bank. per curiam (Smith, Clement, Duncan), employment Affirming summary judgment against plaintiff, upholding ruling that restrictive covenants in Employee Service … More February 27, 2025, opinions

November 21-25, 2024, opinions

Designated for publication Engelhardt, J. (Dennis, Southwick, Engelhardt), breach of contract, employment, personal jurisdiction Affirming dismissal of Louisiana-resident employee’s breach-of-contract wage payment claim against Virginia-resident employer for lack of personal jurisdiction. “[Defendant] Pritchard contends the fiduciary shield doctrine precludes jurisdiction based on his purely corporate contacts with Louisiana. [Plaintiff] Savoie counters that the fiduciary shield … More November 21-25, 2024, opinions

October 15, 2024, opinions

Designated for publication Southwick, J. (Dennis, Southwick, Engelhardt), criminal, sentencing Affirming 33-month sentence and conviction for possession of a firearm by a felon, holding that the district court acted appropriately in accepting the Sentencing Guidelines’ commentary defining “large capacity magazine” and that the underlying criminal statute is not unconstitutional; but vacating imposition of discretionary terms … More October 15, 2024, opinions

July 23, 2024, opinions

Designated for publication Engelhardt, J. (King, Ho, Engelhardt), Ho, J., concurring in judgment; criminal, sufficiency of evidence, timeliness, restitution Reversing conviction for bankruptcy fraud, but affirming conviction for tax evasion and order of restitution as condition of supervised release. The Court held that the defendant’s indictment for bankruptcy fraud should have been dismissed as untimely, … More July 23, 2024, opinions

June 5-7, 2024, opinions

Designated for publication Smith, J. (joined by Jones, Stewart, Southwick, Higginson, Willett, Ho, Duncan, Engelhardt, Oldham, Wilson, Ramirez, JJ.); Haynes, J., concurring in judgment only; Richman, C.J., dissenting (joined by Elrod, Graves, Douglas, JJ.); criminal, sufficiency of evidence, Miranda rights, due process On en banc rehearing of panel opinion that had reversed on the basis … More June 5-7, 2024, opinions

April 16-22, 2024, opinions

Designated for publication per curiam (voting against en banc rehearing: Richman, Stewart, Southwick, Haynes, Graves, Higginson, Willett, Douglas, Ramirez; voting for en banc rehearing: Jones, Smith, Elrod, Ho, Duncan, Engelhardt, Oldham, Wilson); Willett, J., concurring in denial of en banc rehearing; Ho, J., dissenting from denial of en banc rehearing; Oldham, J., dissenting from denial … More April 16-22, 2024, opinions

April 10, 2024, opinions

Designated for publication Willett, J. (Elrod, Willett, Duncan), employment, whistleblower, retaliation When a plaintiff brings a claim against the government and its employees for tortious conduct under the MWPA, is that claim subject to the procedural requirements of the MTCA? Higginson, J. (Wiener, Haynes, Higginson), insurance Affirming summary judgment for defendant insurer on claims for … More April 10, 2024, opinions

March 8, 2024, opinions

Designated for publication per curiam (Richman, Higginbotham, Elrod), unfair trade practices, improper argument Reversing judgment on jury verdict in favor of defendant in unfair trade practices claim, and remanding for further proceedings, on the basis that “the Defendants’ counsels’ closing argument irreparably prejudiced the fairness of the trial.” The Court held that “legitimate ‘oratory’ and … More March 8, 2024, opinions

November 7-8, 2023, opinions

Designated for publication Higginbotham, J. (Higginbotham, Smith, Elrod), product liability, expert witness, jury instructions Affirming judgment and damages award against Honda in strict liability and negligence defective design and product liability claims arising from side-impact car accident, rejecting arguments that district court erred in denying motion to exclude liability experts, denying motion for new trial … More November 7-8, 2023, opinions

July 26, 2023, opinions

Designated for publication per curiam (Haynes, Engelhardt, Saldaña, by designation), Engelhardt, J., concurring; criminal, sentencing Affirming upward departure from 15-21-month guidelines range to impose 72-month sentence for convictions of identity theft and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. The Court held that the district court did not abuse its discretion, as the district … More July 26, 2023, opinions