Law Commons^™

1982 Amendments To Virginia's Driving While Intoxicated Laws, Eddie W. Wilson

University of Richmond Law Review

The problem of fatal automobile crashes involving alcohol-impaired drivers has reached epidemic proportions in the United States. While the exact number of alcohol-related crashes is not known, almost one-half of all fatally injured drivers tested in the United States were found to have been too intoxicated to drive. Although statistics show a lower percentage of alcohol-related fatal crashes in Virginia than the prevailing national average, the pervasiveness of the problem and its dire consequences resulted in legislative action to change Virginia's laws governing drinking and driving.

Products Liability And The Virginia Statute Of Limitations - A Call For The Legislative Rescue Squad, Robert I. Stevenson

University of Richmond Law Review

In recent years a flood of federally-funded scientific break-throughs have on almost a weekly basis established that some form of cancer or other dreaded disease is "caused" by exposure to a man-made product often not previously suspected of having a toxic tendency. Persons so afflicted then seek recovery from the product manufacturer. Their basis in tort is either for negligence in producing so harmful (and thus defective) a product, or for having failed to warn of the danger, or for "strict liability" within Section 402A of the Restatement (Second) of Torts. Where, as in Virginia, there is uncertainty as to …

The Legislative Abrogation Of Interspousal Immunity In Virginia, Lisa Anderson-Lloyd

University of Richmond Law Review

Is a wife who hires someone to murder her husband liable in tort for the injuries he sustains in the murder attempt? The Virginia Supreme Court faced just this question in 1980 in Counts v. Counts. In light of the partial abrogation of the doctrine of interspousal immunity by the Virginia Supreme Court during the 1970's in wrongful death actions and inactions for damages in motor vehicle accident cases, a well reasoned prediction would have anticipated a further erosion of the doctrine. In Counts, however, the court disallowed the interspousal suit for an intentional tort, signaling that it had no …

A Critique Of Hodel V. Virginia Surface Mining And Reclamation Association, Timothy W. Mcafee

University of Richmond Law Review

On January 3, 1980, the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia declared substantial portions of the Federal Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (hereinafter "the Surface Mining Act" or "the Act") to be unconstitutional in Virginia Surface Mining & Reclamation Association v. Andrus. Specifically, the district court found that section 515(d) and (e) of the Act were in contravention of the tenth amendment, that sections 515(d)-(e) and 522 of the Act constituted an unconstitutional taking of private property without just compensation in violation of the fifth amendment and that sections 518 and 521 of …

Filling In The Gaps Of Virginia Bail Reform, R. Bryan Hatchett

University of Richmond Law Review

The 1960's and early 1970's witnessed an unprecedented reform of the bail laws of this country. The reform has made it possible for a greater percentage of criminal defendants to be released before trial thereby avoiding the stigma and considerable prejudice flowing from incarceration. Even though the reform has also produced a modest increase in the number of persons who fail to appear for trial, on balance critical response to the reform has been favorable.

The Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction Act In Virginia, Elizabeth Carrington Shuff

University of Richmond Law Review

Due to the dramatic rise over the last decade in the number of child custody disputes between parents who are geographically separated, courts increasingly are faced with interstate litigation and its attendant legal and emotional problems. Because foreign state custody decrees traditionally have been viewed as modifiable and therefore have not been accorded the respect given to final decrees, parents who lose in one state have been encouraged to seek a more favorable forum in a second state. By employing such self-help methods as "child snatching,"' a parent can avail himself of a second day in court.

Federal Youth Corrections Act: The Continuing Charade, Wilfred J. Ritz

University of Richmond Law Review

No one will ever know, at least with any certainty, whether more harm than good has been done by the Federal Youth Corrections Act. The Act was enacted by Congress in 1950 upon the recommendation of a committee of the Judicial Conference of the United States. The youth offenders who have benefited under YCA are those who have committed the most serious crimes, such as murder, robbery, and rape, and those with the longest records of serious criminal conduct. Because of the YCA, some of these dangerous offenders have received less severe sentences, and some have been released on parole …

The Federal Strip Mining Act: Environmental Protection Comes To The Coalfields Of Virginia, Edward Shawn Grandis

University of Richmond Law Review

Strip mining, for those of us who are touched by it, either as residents of areas affected by the mining or as professionals or bureaucrats concerned with the legal or technical issues involved, conjours up vivid images of land devastation, offsite property damage and high profits with little risk involved for the operator.

Sentencing In Criminal Cases: How Great The Need For Reform?, Anthony P. Giorno

University of Richmond Law Review

For many years, the sentencing process of the criminal justice system sought to achieve four goals: deterrence, rehabilitation, incapacitation of the offender, and retribution for society and the victim. The achievement of these goals was implemented in the majority of jurisdictions through imposition of an indeterminate sentence and discretionary release by an administrative body-traditionally a parole board. This approach allowed courts to announce relatively long sentences as a deterrent to future criminal behavior and to placate the victim and society, but tempered the punishment by allowing early release on an individual basis as soon as the offender had been rehabilitated.

Statutory Changes In Child Placement, Kathleen S. Mehfoud

University of Richmond Law Review

Based on recommendations by the Joint Subcommittee on the Placement of Children for Adoption, [hereinafter cited as the Subcommittee], the 1978 Session of the General Assembly made significant changes in the adoption statutes. The study by the Subcommittee was authorized during the 1977 Session following the introduction of several bills which would have permitted physicians and attorneys to participate in child placement without being licensed. The Assembly felt that such an important issue was deserving of closer scrutiny and therefore commissioned the study. The Subcommittee was directed to probe with particular care the special case of "independent adoptions," that is, …

Take-Over Bid Disclosure Act, Elliott H. Dejarnette

University of Richmond Law Review

The recent changes in the Take-Over Bid Disclosure Act by the General Assembly in its 1978 session are essentially a return to the shorter time limit requirements that existed prior to the 1977 amendment to the Virginia Code. As before, the offeror company which is contemplating a take-over of another corporation's stock [hereinafter referred to as the target corporation] must file with the State Corporation Commission [hereinafter referred to as SCC] and with the registered agent of the target corporation a statement which contains all information required by § 13.1-531(b). This filing must be made twenty days prior to such …

Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction Act, Emily M. Trapnell

University of Richmond Law Review

A significant piece of legislation, the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction Act, introduced for the second time in 1978, has been held over for consideration by the 1979 General Assembly. Passed by the Senate in 1977, the bill implementing the Act was killed in the House that year because, according to the bill's patron, Senator Joseph V. Gartlan, Jr., the short session in 1977 failed to provide sufficient time for House members to study the legislation. But Senator Gartlan is optimistic about the bill's chances in 1979 and this Comment proposes not only to explicate the major provisions of the Act …

Prisoners' Rights Litigation- 42 U.S.C. §1983- Litigation: Defendant's View, Burnett Miller Iii

University of Richmond Law Review

There can be little doubt that since the late 1960's the status and conditions of our prisons have become a public issue. It can probably be said without citation that as a general proposition most states have found their prisons in a state of need. Our prisons have for many years been economically neglected in the wake of more publicly acceptable priorities. The philosophy seemed to be that prisoners were criminals that should be put away, and their lot was of their own making. There would then, of course, always be more pressing and socially acceptable purposes for which to …

Prisoners' Rights Litigation- 42 U.S.C. §1983- Litigation: Plaintiff's View, John D. Grad, Philip J. Hirschkop

University of Richmond Law Review

During the years of the Warren Court, much social progress was achieved in this country through litigation. In the areas of civil liberties and civil rights this was chiefly done through affirmative law suits brought in federal court under the Civil Rights Act of 1870. While this Act was not widely used in its first ninety years, its development in the last two decades has been remarkable. Suits under the Constitution and this Act have brought dramatic change in the fields of civil rights and civil liberties.

A Review Of Prisoners' Rights Litigation Under 42 U .S.C . §1983, Scott D. Anderson, Theodore I. Brenner, Vera Duke, James E. Gray, Ronald M. Maupin

University of Richmond Law Review

Before the mid-1960's, the federal courts frequently invoked the "hands-off" doctrine, a rule of deference to state correctional administrators, when petitioned by inmates to review conditions in state jails and prisons. When applied, the doctrine essentially held that a state prisoner's grievance was beyond the scope of authority or competence ofthe federal judiciary. With an increasing realization during the late 1960's and early 1970's that federal court intervention into state prison matters would be necessary, the 42 U.S.C. § 19831 civil rights complaint became the leading tool for effecting change in the area of prisoners rights. In order to gain …

A Guide To Federal Warranty Legislation-The Magnuson-Moss Act, Richard H. Matthews

University of Richmond Law Review

One of the primary causes of concern in the recent movement toward greater consumer protection has been in the area of product warranties. Limited express warranties, liability disclaimers and ambiguous remedy

procedures often have been used by manufacturers and merchants to strip the consumer of all but a bare minimum of protection against defective products. Finding state laws incapable of adequately solving this problem, Congress preempted the field by enacting the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act.' This Act makes major changes in the law of warranties and places much heavier legal burdens upon manufacturers and other warrantors. This comment will attempt to …

State Legislative Ratification Of Federal Constitutional Amendments: An Overview, Philip L. Martin

University of Richmond Law Review

Article V of the United States Constitution sets out the amend- ment procedure, which consists of two stages, proposal and ratification. Each stage, in turn, offers two alternative procedures which can be interchanged to provide four means of effecting constitutional alteration. An amendment may be proposed either by a two-thirds vote of each house of Congress or by a national convention assembled upon proper application by the legislatures of two-thirds of the states; and an amendment may be ratified, as Congress decides, either by three-fourths of the state legislatures or by conventions in three-fourths of the states. To date, the …

The General Assembly And Local Government: Legislating A Constitution 1969-1970, Jack Spain Jr.

University of Richmond Law Review

Counties, cities, towns, sanitary districts and authorities-these are the building blocks of the Commonwealth of Virginia. The operations of these units directly affect the day-to-day activities of every Virginian. The Virginia Constitutional Revision Commission (the Commission), in proposing its recommended changes to the Virginia Constitution of 1902, therefore, considered the area of local government most carefully. Its recommendations contained in Article VII of the proposed Revised Constitution of 1971, set forth in the Commission's Report. When the proposed Constitution was considered by the General Assembly in the special session of 1969 before its final adoption by the General Assembly and …

The Abolition Of Dower In Virginia: The Uniform Probate Code As An Alternative To Proposed Legislation, J. Rodney Johnson

University of Richmond Law Review

Elsewhere in the pages of this issue the reader will find a discussion of some of the more important legislation enacted by the 1972 session of the General Assembly of Virginia.' This article is concerned with one of the bills that did not pass-the bill to abolish dower and curtesy. Why all this concern with a dead bill, especially since the dower problem is one of long standing which has sustained attacks before? The answer is that the forces of opposition have grown stronger each year among Virginia lawyers. The Virginia Advisory Legislative Council has recommended the conversion of dower …