Virginia's Equitable Distribution Statute

President’s Page ....................................... Evans B. Brasfield 2 Diversity Jurisdiction: An Idea Whose Time Has Not Gone ..................................... James A. Eichner 4 Guidelines for Contracting With HMOs and PPOs ........... Howard Feller 7 Virginia’s Equitable Distribution Statute: What DoesIt Really Mean and Where Do I Start? .................. Reilly Marchant 10 Judges’ Views on Medical Malpractice Review William H. Daughtrey, Jr. and Charles H. Smith 14 21 THE VIRGINIA BAR ASSOCIATION OFFICERS AND EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE President Past President Evans B. Brasfield George G. Grattan, IV P.O. Box 1535 P.O. Box 9015 Richmond, Virginia 23212 Charlottesville, Virginia 22906 President-Elect Secretary- Treasurer Edmund L. Walton, Jr. Daniel J. Meador 1301 Vincent Place School of Law McLean, Virginia 22101 University of Virginia Charlottesville, Virginia 22901 Chairman, Young Lawyers Section Chairman-Elect, Young Lawyers Section William G. Hancock Charles M. Lellar P.O. Box 1122 1800 Sovran Center Richmond, Virginia 23208 Norfolk, Virginia 23510 Executive Committee 1~ Gordon Smith, Chairman John M. Ryan Thomas T. Lawson 1400 Ross Building 500 World Trade Center P.O. Box 720 Richmond, Virginia 23219 Norfolk, Virginia 23510 Roanoke, Virginia 24004 R. Reid Young, Jr. Frank L. Summers, Jr. J. Robert McAllister, III P.O. Box 72 P.O. Box 1287 P.O. Box 549 Martinsville, Virginia 24112 Staunton, Virginia 24~01,. Arlington, .Virginia 22216 James R. McKenry Andrew P. Miller 1072 Laskin Road 2101 L Street, N.W. Eighth Floor Virginia Beach, Virginia 23451 Washington, D.C. 20037 Executive Director Director, Committee Activities Joan S. Mahan Emerson G. Spies Suite 708, 7th & Franklin Building School of Law 701 E. Franklin Street University of Virginia Richmond, Virginia 23219 Charlottesville, Virginia 22901 W inia B ar. ls so eiatio our al Volume XI Spring 1985 Number 2 EDITORIAL BOARD CONTENTS President’s Page ................................... 2- Appointed Members Evans B, Brasfield David W. Parrish, Jr. Chairman Diversity Jurisdiction: An Idea Whose Charlottesville Time Has Not Gone ............................. ° 4 Vernon M. Geddy, Jr. James A. Eichner Williamsburg - Guidelines for Contracting With HMOs and PPOs.,. 7 Edward S. Graves ¯ Lynchburg Howard Feller John F. Kay, Jr. Virginia’s Equitable Distribution Statute: Richmond What Does It Really Mean and Where Do I Start? ....................... ° ..... :.. 10 Ex-Officio Members Reilly Marchant Evans B. Brasfield Judges’ Views on Medical Malpractice President Richmond Review Panels .................................. 14 William H. Daughtrey, Jr. and Edmund L. Walton, Jr. President-Elect Charles H. Smith McLean Bar Association Prodeedings Joan S. Mahan Executive Director The Winter Meeting ............................. 24 Richmond Announcements ................................. 26 YLS Chairman’s Report ......................... William G. Hancock 28 Chairman, Young 1985 Patrons .................................... 32 Lawyers Section Committee Reports .............................. 34 Richmond Memorial~ ....................................... 41 Editorial Staff Charles E. Friend Editor The Virginia Bar Association Journal is published quarterly by The Virginia Bar Association as a service to the profession. Contributions are welcome, but the Bess Castle Wendell right is reserved to select material to be published. Publication of any article or Associate Editor statement is not to be deemed an endorsement of the views expressed therein by the Association. The office of publication is located at 3849 W. Weyburn Road, Rich- Vernon M. Geddy, III mond, Virginia 23235. Editor, Young Membership dues include the cost of one subscription to each member of the Lawyers Contributions Association. Subscription price to others, $10.00 per year; single copies $3.00. Second-class postage paid at Richmond, Virginia 23232. @1985 The Virginia Bar Association (ISSN 0360-3857) (USPS 093-110) EVANS B. BRASFIELD The Association was incorporated and shall exist for the purpose of cultivating and advancing the science of jurisprudence, pro- moting reform in the law and in judicial procedure, facilitating the administration of justice in this state, and upholding and elevating the standard of honor, integrity, and courtesy in the legal profession. (Constitu- tion of The Virginia Bar Association, Article II, Objectives). IN my four years on your Association’s Executive Committee I have observed great progress in meeting Evans B. Brasfield graduated from the Uni- the objectives of the Association. During this period, versity of Virginia in 1954 and from its School under the leadership of Hugh Patterson, Jack Kay, of Law in 1959. He is a partner in the Richmond Jay Walker and George Grattan, the Association has firm of Hunton & Williams and is General vigorously rededicated itself to the goals of law Counsel of Virginia Electric and Power Com- reform and public service, and those goals have been pany and its parent corporation, Dominion the principal focus of Association activity. In these Resources, Inc. Mr. Brasfield has been a member of the Asso- efforts it was guided by the report and recommenda- ciation’s Executive Committee since 1981 and tions of the Long Range Planning Committee, chaired was its Chairman in 1983. He previously served by Bill Spong. That Committee not only urged ex- as Chairman of its Administrative Law Com- panded efforts in law reform and public service, but it mittee. He has been a member of the Council of also suggested that these goals would be more effec- the American Bar Association’s Section of Pub- tively promoted if the Association were to establish lic Utility Law, and he is a Fellow of the Ameri- permanent offices in Richmond, with a full-time can Bar Foundation. Executive Director. As you know, this new organiza- tion is in place and working very well. With it the Association moved quickly to modernize its legislative policies and procedures so as to make its law may wonder what are my plans to sustain this reform efforts more comprehensive and more effec- progress. tive, it established a Public Service Committee to con- Activity in 1985 sider how it might appropriately expand its service to the public, and it embarked on a number of worth- First, we will continue at full speed with the law while new public service projects. reform and public service projects that have already The leadership of the Association has been abso- been started. Many of the substantive law commit- lutely first-rate during these years, not only through tees--particularly the Business Law Committee, the the Presidents mentioned above but also through all Civil Litigation Committee, the Criminal Law Com- of the able and creative members of the Executive mittee, the Committee on Legal Problems of the Committee, with the result that remarkable progress Elderly, the Mental Health Committee and the Com- has been made. It is indeed a great honor and privi- mittee on Wills, Trusts & Estates--have matters lege and, more importantly, a great challenge, to suc- before the 1985 General Assembly, and our emphasis ceed to the presidency under such circumstances. You on such legislative activity will continue. The recom- 2 mendations of the Public Service Committee that the State Bar, a law school dean, a justice of the Supreme Association prepare for public distribution a number Court of Virginia, and two distinguished practition- of law-related pamphlets--a Handbook for Virginia ers. Hugh Patterson will serve as Chairman. The Jurors, a Senior Citizens’ Handbook, a Handbook for other present mSrh~oers are Bill Spong, Tom Gordon Administrators of Decedents’ Estates, and others-- and Waller Horsley. It would, I believe, be impossible will be pursued, and the numerous public service proj- to improve on this initial membership for a committee ects of the Young Lawyers Section will go forward to promote lawyer professionalism, and we are very and be expanded. We have momentum in achieving fortunate that they have all.agreed to participate. the law reform and public service objectives in the I see the subject of lawyer professionalism as a Constitution, and that momentum will continue this major focus of our attention in 1985 and.beyond, and year. through the initiatives taken last year, together with But the Constitution states another objective, that the work of the Special Committee and any new proj- of "upholding and elevating the standard of honor, ects that grow out of that work, we should be able to integrity and courtesy in the legal profession." It make a substantial contribution. seems to me that now, perhaps more than ever, this is a subject deserving of greater attention. All of us have Summer Fun encountered newspaper and magazine articles expres- It would be out of keeping with this Association’s sing views hostile to our profession and commenting distinguished history if 1985 were to be all work and on the rise of commercialism and the decline of profes- no play. One of our finest traditions is that of having sionalism in the practice of law. We are aware of a good time with good people, and our serious pur- Chief Justice Burger’s speech to the American Bar poses need not stand in the way of preserving that Association last year severely criticizing the profes- tradition. I believe we can promise you that our sion for this trend (despite the fact that de.cisions of summer meeting will be great fun for everyone, and I his Court are thought by many to be a major contrib- suggest you

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