Virginia Recent Legal Answers from Lawyers

Hi Crystal: Were you recently injured in an accident? If yes, I would recommend that you consult with car accident lawyer that is licensed in your state ASAP. Explain to the attorney the facts of the accident and any injuries sustained, and find out if that lawyer can assist you in moving forward with an injury claim. Even if that lawyer cannot take the case, he or she will hopefully point you in the right direction given your circumstances. I wish you the best of luck in pursuing this matter. Disclaimer: This response is for informational purposes only and does not create an attorney-client relationship. ... Read More

The answer is yes, you can divorce someone with dementia.  The way we do this is to have a Guardian ad Litem appointed to protect your husband's interests.  It's the same process we use all the time with spouses who are incarcerated and therefore also legally incapacitated.  The GAL is another lawyer who is appointed by the court and will do what they believe is in your husband's best interest (not necessarily what he says he wants - like lawyers representing clients are required to do).  This does not mean they can stop the divorce; you will still be able to divorce him.  It might just take a little longer than usual, since the GAL needs an opportunity to look into the situation.  You woudl be responsible for paying for the GAL as well as your own lawyer.  One complication may be who is going to manage your husband's share of any marital funds or assets and these would probably need to be set up in trust for him.  You may need to seek guardianship and conservatorship, if you have not already, which you may have been able to get away without, being his spouse, but probably not as an ex-spouse.  As you can see there are going to be many layers complicating this.  Many people simply date before they are officially divorced and while adultery is technically still a crime in Virginia it is almost never prosecuted.  So while I would not be able to advise you to break the law I can tell you that in this instance it would definitley be the easier path.  I'm pretty sure God and any other judges would understand. ... Read More

It would appear that the child is protected under the CSPA as his age was “frozen” at the time that the priority date became current which would appear from your set of facts to have been in September 2022. He also sought to acquire his immigrant status by his having filed the I-485 application in the same month. Alternate options would not appear to be necessary. Due to the limitations of the Lawyers.com Forums, Alan Lee & Arthur Lee, Esqs.’ (the "Firm") participation in responding to questions posted herein does not constitute legal advice, nor legal representation of the person or entity posting a question. No Attorney/Client relationship is or shall be construed to be created hereby. The information provided herein by the Firm is general, and requires that the poster obtain specific legal advice from an attorney. The poster shall not rely upon the information provided herein as legal advice nor as the basis for making any decisions of legal consequence.... Read More

In coming to the US, you are making a representation that you are a temporary visitor. Bringing your US citizen child with you may raise doubts on whether you have the requisite nonimmigrant intent. Under the Trump administration, inspections at airports by CBP are becoming more rigorous, and there is the chance of being turned away. A number of individuals have also been detained for days and weeks. A US citizen minor child does not afford any protection against removal. Assuming that you are married to the US citizen, you can be sponsored even if you are overseas. At the end of the process, you would apply for an immigrant visa after interview at the American Consulate or Embassy, a process which is taking approximately two years. USCIS and the consular officer will look at the circumstances of your marriage to ensure that you still both intend to engage in a life together. Due to the limitations of the Lawyers.com Forums, Alan Lee & Arthur Lee, Esqs.’ (the "Firm") participation in responding to questions posted herein does not constitute legal advice, nor legal representation of the person or entity posting a question. No Attorney/Client relationship is or shall be construed to be created hereby. The information provided herein by the Firm is general, and requires that the poster obtain specific legal advice from an attorney. The poster shall not rely upon the information provided herein as legal advice nor as the basis for making any decisions of legal consequence.... Read More

Yes — you should absolutely seek legal representation right away. Being accused of stealing credit card information is a serious matter that could lead to criminal charges, even if you are completely innocent. Do not try to explain yourself to your employer, investigators, or law enforcement without an attorney present, as anything you say could be misinterpreted or used against you later. A criminal defense attorney can contact your employer or the police on your behalf, find out whether formal charges have been filed, and help protect your rights during any investigation. If this allegation involves your job in health care, it could also affect your professional license, so an attorney can advise you on that as well. In the meantime, gather any documents, timecards, or communications that may show your innocence or access limits, but don’t share them until you’ve spoken with your lawyer. The most important step right now is to hire a defense lawyer or request a public defender if you can’t afford one.... Read More

This appears to be a confusing question as no one is designated as head of household where there is a jointly filed tax return. Perhaps the correct answer is the individual who is making the most declared income or the individual whose name appears first in the joint filed tax return. Due to the limitations of the Lawyers.com Forums, Alan Lee & Arthur Lee, Esqs.’ (the "Firm") participation in responding to questions posted herein does not constitute legal advice, nor legal representation of the person or entity posting a question. No Attorney/Client relationship is or shall be construed to be created hereby. The information provided herein by the Firm is general, and requires that the poster obtain specific legal advice from an attorney. The poster shall not rely upon the information provided herein as legal advice nor as the basis for making any decisions of legal consequence.... Read More

This is something any family law attorney should be able to help with.  It's in the nature of a post-nuptial agreement.  Our office is in Tysons, so you may want to find someone closer to you.  But it's something we could handle remotely via email and Zoom and then you could get it notarized at your bank or local UPS Store.  ... Read More

In Florida, a girlfriend would not have any inheritance rights unless provided for in the will or trust. A spouse or wife would have inheritance rights.  But Virginia, may have something special, such as common law marriage.  Florida does not have common law marriage.  In Florida, Intestate (no will) would be inherited by the blood heirs (per stirpes) ie.  children, if not married.    ... Read More

It would be impossible to answer this question without more information, such as what the grounds for eviction are.  The short answer is that yes Tenants can win eviction cases, but probably not for the reasons you state.  If they are being evicted for non-payment of rent and you have followed all of the proper notice requirements, then it is unlikely that these issues would stop an eviction.  They would have had to escrow the rent pursuant to Virginia Code 55.1-1244 or they can make repairs and deduct from the rent with proper notice given pursuant to section 55.1-1244.1.  Otherwise the rent pretty much has to be paid, unless the place has burned down or something else that would constitute a constructive eviction.  If they have paid rent and you are evicting them for some other reason then it is much harder.   ... Read More

I hope that your custody agreement says something more than just "parenting time every other week". A good custody agreement will spell out the dates and times that he's supposed to pick them up and where, and will say who's supposed to pick up, who's supposed to do the drop off and things like that. If yours just says "parenting time every other week" and nothing else then he is probably not breaching the agreement since it is too vague. You need to talk with an attorney as soon as possible to work on getting more definite language in your custody agreement so that questions like this won't come up again in the future.... Read More

Hello, Need more information, you mentioned that you are currently on EB-2 so I-140 was approved? Having an approved EB-2 without you adjusting does not automatically keep you in "status". You did not mention your priority date, what your home country is. Let's assume your priority date is current the you should be able to apply for your Green Card. I strongly recommend you have a true Legal Strategy Session with an immigration attorney to go through your immigration history, current status, potential risks etc.... Read More

That is a pretty egregious act of gross negligence.  But in any negligence case you are generally only going to receive compensation for your actual damages.  In this instance your actual damages would have been if you had an unintended pregnancy.  But it sounds like you did not actually get pregnant, so basically you suffered no actual harm from the first doctor's negligence.  You may also have a claim for fraud, but again no injury means no damages.  Because of this you would be unlikely to find a lawyer to take it on, because there is a low likelihood of getting any money out of it.  I would recommend that you report what you found out to the state licensing board. ... Read More

You appear to be eligible to sponsor your parents assuming that they have no inadmissibility issues such as crimes, fraud, etc. On the question of financial sponsorship for your parents, there is a possibility that they may be able to financially support themselves on your I-864 affidavit of support under two scenarios and one in which they can sponsor themselves: 1.) The law appears to allow nonresidents who have income from a legal source to use that income on the petitioner's I-864 as long as there is the expectation that that income will continue after obtaining permanent residence – here, the TPS status with attendant work authorization would perhaps satisfy this scenario. 2.) The assets of persons without status can be put down on your I-864 to bolster the amount of income/assets that you have in support of the I-864. 3.) Persons without status who have earned income on a certain level for 10 years in the US can sponsor themselves through the new 10/24/24 form I-485 (page 8 part 3) which will become mandatory on February 10, 2025. The old I-864W which used to self-sponsor is being discontinued. Kindly note that as you are sponsoring each parent under the immediate relative category, each parent must qualify separately under his and her own set of circumstances under any of these scenarios. Due to the limitations of the Lawyers.com Forums, Alan Lee & Arthur Lee, Esqs.’ (the "Firm") participation in responding to questions posted herein does not constitute legal advice, nor legal representation of the person or entity posting a question. No Attorney/Client relationship is or shall be construed to be created hereby. The information provided herein by the Firm is general, and requires that the poster obtain specific legal advice from an attorney. The poster shall not rely upon the information provided herein as legal advice nor as the basis for making any decisions of legal consequence.... Read More

It's not clear what your question is.  No, a Landlord generally cannot give you a 30-day notice to vacate in the middle of a lease term, although some leases have escape clauses for owners to do that in the event they want to sell their property or under other circumstances.  So we cannot know for sure without reading your lease.  But it sounds like you already moved out anyway, so this issue is moot. ... Read More

Technically the lawyer can do this because it is a different case than the one between you and your prior spouse.  It's not an actual conflict, but it is pretty frowned upon to file a suit against a former client.  But the very fact that you say he represented both of you in the first divorce indicates that this attorney is playing fast and loose with the rules of ethics.  He could not have represented both of you as your lawyer.  He could only have acted as a mediator, if he is qualified to do so.  I think it is more likely that he actually represented your ex-husband and considered you the adverse party, but failed to make that clear to you.  Lawyers can get in a lot of trouble for that.  He should have made it clear which one of you he was representing and he could not provide legal advice to the other.... Read More

If your spouse is incarcerated then he is considered legally incapacitated and would have to have a guardian ad litem appointed on his behalf to protect his interests.  This is true even if he is not contesting anything in the divorce.  Appointing a GAL is not complicated, but it would probably be worth it for you to just hire a lawyer to take care of this for you.  It doesn't have to be expensive, if there is no property in dispute.  But you woudl be responsible for the GAL fees, as well.  A preliminary question is whether you last lived together in Virginia or in California.  Because, if California, then you probably need to file there.  While he could consent to jurisdiction in Virginia it might make things more complicated for the GAL to contact him.  May be best to do the divorce in California.  But if you have no connection to California it could be done here. ... Read More

It sounds like what you have is a settlement agreement, not a court order.  You cannot evict and change locks until you have a court order for possession of the premises.  Then you must submit Writ of Eviction to the court in order to have the sheriff schedule the eviction.  That is when you can change the locks - when the sheriff is there with you for the eviction.  Except in certain circumstances there is no "self help" eviction in Virginia any longer.  You've done the right thing by filing the eviction with the court, but you have to see it through to the end.  The fact that you have another court date scheduled would indicate that it's not the end.... Read More

Although I'm a Maryland divorce lawyer, I can share some general guidance. If you're considering separation or divorce, it’s important to consult with a family law attorney in your area who can help you navigate the legal process, particularly when marital conflicts involve complex family dynamics. An attorney can assist with separation agreements, property division, and ensuring your rights are protected as you work toward a resolution. Or, in the event of no agreement, a competent attorney can make sure you have your ducks lined up in the event of litigation. Don't wait until the last minute like most people, be proactive now.... Read More

I will assume that you and your ex both signed the promissory note (financing) for the car, and that both of you are on the title.  If this is true, you will receive a notice from the bankruptcy court when he files.  If the car is surrendered to the bank or repossessed (because payments were not made), your credit will take a hit.  Also, if there is a deficiency (there is still a balance due on the note after the car is sold at auction and the proceeds are applied toward the balance due), you could face a lawsuit from the bank for the difference.  If you did not sign the promissory note, your credit will not be affected.... Read More