Blacksburg Law Blog

Virginia's residential property disclosure rules

On behalf of Spicer, Olin & Associates, P.C. posted in real estate transactions on Friday, November 8, 2019.

Buying a house is an important financial step in the life of a family. In addition to being the family's home, a house also often represents a family's most costly, and valuable investment. If it turns out that the house is not in the condition which it appeared to be in, what started as a family dream can quickly degenerate into a nightmare.

At best, a family may have to spend thousands of dollars in repairs or write off a lot of equity in the home. At worst, the home may turn out to be unlivable, and the family will need to move. It is therefore little wonder that, these days, the old legal doctrine of let the buyer beware does not apply to the sale of homes in Virginia.

How to draft a strong business contract

On behalf of Spicer, Olin & Associates, P.C. on Wednesday, October 30, 2019.

Contracts are a vital tool in the business industry, but they can only protect you to the degree of their strength. Their power is a reflection of the thought and effort you put into them. A hurried, vague contract is much more likely to bring you disputes than a clear, thorough agreement.

As you create contracts for your company, keep the following in mind to ensure an accurate, legally binding document.

Common causes of hunting accidents

On behalf of Spicer, Olin & Associates, P.C. on Saturday, October 26, 2019.

Hunting season is here in Virginia. Hunting can be a satisfying sport whether you live for catching wild game or just enjoy being in peace and quiet out in nature. However, it comes with its own risks.

While many people may automatically assume that the biggest danger lies in the firearms and other weaponry used to take down game, these do not pose the greatest threat. In fact, hunters following safety measures has reduced the number of shooting accidents in Virginia, reports the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries. What else, then, causes injuries to hunters?

We represent a range of business sizes and types

On behalf of Spicer, Olin & Associates, P.C. posted in business formation & planning on Thursday, October 24, 2019.

Many different types of businesses either call the Blacksburg area home or, at least, have a presence in this area. This part of Virginia has sole proprietorships and partnerships as well as smaller, family-owned corporations and limited liability companies.

Likewise, there are many larger corporations which, although they may have different legal needs, still may require the services of an attorney.

Truck crash on Interstate 81 leaves two dead

On behalf of Spicer, Olin & Associates, P.C. posted in truck accidents on Thursday, October 10, 2019.

An accident on Interstate 81 involving a large truck left two people dead. One of the victims was a Blacksburg resident.

Virginia State Police, who investigated the Roanoke County truck accident, charged the trucker involved in the accident with reckless driving. However, they chose not to arrest the driver but instead to issue a summons for him to appear in court at a later date.

Reckless driving in Virginia

On behalf of Spicer, Olin & Associates, P.C. posted in criminal defense on Friday, September 27, 2019.

As in other states, Virginia criminalizes certain driving behaviors since, in the eyes of the law, they are especially dangerous and especially easy to avoid.

To put it another way, a reckless driving charge is meant to punish never events, that is, events which should never happen if a driver is being remotely careful. In most states, this means that things like street racing can get punished as reckless driving, and an offender can go to jail and face other serious criminal penalties as a consequence for his or her actions.

What is a joint venture and why would I want to enter one?

On behalf of Spicer, Olin & Associates, P.C. posted in business formation & planning on Friday, September 13, 2019.

A joint venture is a type of business association. It is a little bit different, though, from other business structures, like corporations or conventional partnerships, since it is for a limited purpose and may also be limited in time and in scope.

Basically, a joint venture is a contractual arrangement between two or more businesses that are committed to engaging in a common project. The businesses have every intention of maintaining their independence in all other respects and may even wind up competing against each other in different markets.

Parental tips for protecting college kids from a DUI

On behalf of Spicer, Olin & Associates, P.C. on Wednesday, September 4, 2019.

The fall semester at college may already be underway, but it is not too late to have important discussions with your young adult children about college life. One big aspect of these years is partying, where alcohol consumption is often excessive.

Regardless of how you feel about your kid drinking, whether to the level of intoxication or not, you need to arm your son or daughter with the knowledge of how to avoid drunk driving charges and what to do if they occur.

One dead, 1 seriously injured in chain reaction accident

On behalf of Spicer, Olin & Associates, P.C. posted in truck accidents on Saturday, August 31, 2019.

An accident on Interstate 66 in Northern Virginia left one person dead and a young woman, the deceased person's wife, recovering from critical injuries. The family of the couple has begun raising money to cover medical bills and funeral expenses.

According to authorities, the accident involved a chain reaction on the freeway in the middle of the day. Apparently, the driver of a luxury vehicle rear-ended the vehicle in front of it. Ultimately, the BMW also hit a large truck. The large truck hit several other vehicles and eventually rolled over. One of the vehicles the truck hit left the road and caught fire.

About 20% of serious medical conditions misdiagnosed

On behalf of Spicer, Olin & Associates, P.C. on Thursday, August 29, 2019.

Regrettably, medical misdiagnosis is far more common than you may want to believe, and an entirely too large percentage of American patients who visit their primary care doctors are getting incomplete or downright inaccurate information when they seek diagnoses. Because so many patients do not get the full story when visiting their doctors, seeking a second opinion from a separate physician is wise anytime you receive a serious diagnosis or a recommendation for a highly invasive form of treatment.

According to AARP, medical misdiagnosis happens so frequently nowadays that about 10% of all patient deaths result from diagnostic-related circumstances. Furthermore, in one Mayo Clinic-conducted study involving patients who sought second opinions after receiving diagnoses, only about 12% of patients had received accurate diagnoses from their doctors during their initial visits.