Business Litigation Article Archives
You’ve Been Served in Virginia. Now What? 6 Things to Do Right Away
Plus: A Quick Checklist for What to Do After You’ve Been Served
August, 2026 | By Anthony R. Coppola
Being served with a lawsuit can be unsettling—especially when you are running a business and already have plenty competing for your attention. A complaint arrives. There may be discovery requests attached. And suddenly, you are facing court deadlines that may be measured in weeks, not months. The most important thing to know is this: do…
8 Things to Consider Before You Sue: A Virginia Business Owner’s Guide to Commercial Litigation
July, 2026 | By Anthony R. Coppola
Business disputes are an inevitable part of running a company. A customer fails to pay an invoice. A vendor breaches a contract. A business partner walks away from a deal. An employee violates a non-compete agreement or misuses confidential information. When disputes like these arise, many business owners ask the same question: Should we file…
Practical Construction Law For Maryland Contractors
July, 2017
This article offers Maryland contractors and subcontractors a practical outline of some of the legal principles applicable to their daily business activities in an effort to help them anticipate problems and to be better equipped to resolve potential disputes with a minimum of difficulty and expense. A limited outline such as this cannot provide legal…
To Try or Not to Try: Who Decides Is the Question
May, 2014
The “Right to Try” refers to the right of terminally or seriously ill patients to acquire investigational drugs without waiting for FDA approval. It grants these patients the right to access certain drugs, specifically those drugs that have completed only phase one of the FDA three-phase drug approval process. Advocates of the Right to Try contend that the decision to try an investigational drug should be between a patient and his or her physician and, thus, exclude the government, i.e., the FDA. Opponents support the FDA’s role in the drug approval and distribution process. The Right to Try debate boils down to one question: Who should decide whether a drug is too risky to try?