Virginia Employment Law

On September 8, 2016, the Supreme Court of Virginia ruled that an employee who sues his employer for retaliatory discharge under Code §40.1-51.2:1 after making a health or safety complaint is not entitled to an award of punitive damages.  Property Damage Specialists Inc. v. Rechichar.    The Court reversed the judgment of the Circuit Court for […]

A federal court in Virginia held that an employer is not liable for a female employee’s sexual assault by a male co-worker.  Applying the doctrine of respondent superior, the Court held that the male employee was not acting within the scope of his employment when the assault occurred. Clehm v. BAE Sys. Ordnance, Inc. , […]

Many of us who have worked for someone other than themselves have fantasized about walking in to the office one day, handing our boss a letter of resignation, and then walking out the door (with the lyrics of The Who’s “I’m Free” playing in our heads).  Some of us may have even taken the fantasy one step […]