Fitz v. White

Virginia Circuit Court

Fitz v. White

60 Va. Cir. 341, 2002 Va. Cir. LEXIS 400

CourtVirginia Circuit Court

DecidedNovember 12, 2002

DocketCase No. LM-1930-1

StatusPublished

This text of 60 Va. Cir. 341 (Fitz v. White) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Virginia Circuit Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook

Fitz v. White, 60 Va. Cir. 341, 2002 Va. Cir. LEXIS 400 (Va. Super. Ct. 2002).

Pincite

Opinion

By Judge Melvin R. Hughes, Jr.

In this case, plaintiff, a state prisoner, has instituted this suit by Motion for Judgment for money damages, alleging that his court-appointed attorney, named as a defendant in this action, failed to note an appeal to a judgment order of this court revoking a suspended sentence.

The case was before the court on or about October 9,2002 on defendant’s Motion for Summary Judgment. Plaintiff appeared in person pro se. At that time defendant argued that plaintiff, by failing to adequately respond to Requests for Admissions, has conceded that he has no evidence to show whether any appeal would have been successful had it been timely pursued. Without such evidence, plaintiff’s case cannot be proved. The court agrees.

A plaintiff situated as this plaintiff must plead and prove that there was an attorney-client relationship which gave rise to a duty breached by the attorney and that “the neglect or breach of duty was the proximate cause of [the] claimed damages.” Hendrix v. Daugherty, 249 Va. 540, 544, 457 S.E.2d 71 (1995), citing Allied Production’s District, 217 Va. 763, 764-65, 232 S.E.2d 774 (1977). For this reason and for those mentioned in defendant’s Memorandum in Support of Motion for Summary Judgment, the motion for summary judgment is granted and this action shall be dismissed.

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By Judge Melvin R. Hughes, Jr.

In this case, plaintiff, a state prisoner, has instituted this suit by Motion for Judgment for money damages, alleging that his court-appointed attorney, named as a defendant in this action, failed to note an appeal to a judgment order of this court revoking a suspended sentence.

The case was before the court on or about October 9,2002 on defendant’s Motion for Summary Judgment. Plaintiff appeared in person pro se. At that time defendant argued that plaintiff, by failing to adequately respond to Requests for Admissions, has conceded that he has no evidence to show whether any appeal would have been successful had it been timely pursued. Without such evidence, plaintiff’s case cannot be proved. The court agrees.

A plaintiff situated as this plaintiff must plead and prove that there was an attorney-client relationship which gave rise to a duty breached by the attorney and that “the neglect or breach of duty was the proximate cause of [the] claimed damages.” Hendrix v. Daugherty, 249 Va. 540, 544, 457 S.E.2d 71 (1995), citing Allied Production’s District, 217 Va. 763, 764-65, 232 S.E.2d 774 (1977). For this reason and for those mentioned in defendant’s Memorandum in Support of Motion for Summary Judgment, the motion for summary judgment is granted and this action shall be dismissed.

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Bluebook (online)

60 Va. Cir. 341, 2002 Va. Cir. LEXIS 400, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/fitz-v-white-vacc-2002.

Opinion

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