Tremblay & Smith, LLP » R. Lee Livingston http://www.tremblayandsmith.com Personal Injury & Malpractice, Domestic & Family Law, Corporate & Business Law Mon, 17 May 2010 16:24:24 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.1 en hourly 1 Plaintiff nonsuits, then adds new claims http://www.tremblayandsmith.com/2010/03/29/plaintiff-nonsuits-then-adds-new-claims/ http://www.tremblayandsmith.com/2010/03/29/plaintiff-nonsuits-then-adds-new-claims/#comments Mon, 29 Mar 2010 18:29:08 +0000 admin http://www.tremblayandsmith.com/?p=574 From Virginia Lawyers Weekly:

By Peter Vieth
Published: March 25, 2010

An Alexandria federal judge has allowed new claims in a refiled medical malpractice suit after a nonsuit, even though the additional claims otherwise would be barred by the statute of limitations. The judge examined whether the added claims arose from the same “action, transaction or occurrence” as the earlier lawsuit. The decision stands in marked …

Read more at VA Lawyers Weekly

]]> http://www.tremblayandsmith.com/2010/03/29/plaintiff-nonsuits-then-adds-new-claims/feed/ 0 Helping your client prepare for deposition http://www.tremblayandsmith.com/2010/01/04/helping-your-client-prepare-for-deposition/ http://www.tremblayandsmith.com/2010/01/04/helping-your-client-prepare-for-deposition/#comments Mon, 04 Jan 2010 21:18:17 +0000 admin http://www.tremblayandsmith.com/?p=498 Most of us recognize that preparation is the linchpin of good trial work.  As one trial lawyer said, “Everything else- felicity of expression, improvisational brilliance- is a satellite around the sun.  Thorough preparation is that sun.”  Hence, we spend substantial time preparing our clients to testify at trial.  In most cases, however, the client’s deposition is his trial testimony, because most cases settle before trial.  Maximizing results for our clients may depend on thorough preparation of the client for deposition.

by R. Lee Livingston

Published in The Journal of the Virginia Trail Lawyers Association, Winter 2oo1-2002

Read the full article

]]> http://www.tremblayandsmith.com/2010/01/04/helping-your-client-prepare-for-deposition/feed/ 0 Virginia Super Lawyers® magazine top attorneys in Virginia for 2009 http://www.tremblayandsmith.com/2009/12/21/virginia-super-lawyers%c2%ae-magazine-top-attorneys-in-virginia-for-2009/ http://www.tremblayandsmith.com/2009/12/21/virginia-super-lawyers%c2%ae-magazine-top-attorneys-in-virginia-for-2009/#comments Mon, 21 Dec 2009 19:00:27 +0000 admin http://www.tremblayandsmith.com/?p=362 PRESS RELEASE:

John K. Taggart, III, Thomas E. Albro and R. Lee Livingston have been named by Virginia Super Lawyers® magazine as one of the top attorneys in Virginia for 2009. Only five percent of the lawyers in the state are named by Super Lawyers®.

The selections for Super Lawyers are made by Law & Politics, a division of Key Professional Media, Inc. of Minneapolis, Minn. Each year, Law & Politics undertakes a rigorous multi-phase selection process that includes a statewide survey of lawyers,  independent evaluation of candidates by Law & Politics’ attorney-led research staff, a peer review of candidates by practice area, and a good-standing and disciplinary check.

Law & Politics publishes Super Lawyers magazines across the country. In addition to the magazines, Law & Politics publishes newspaper inserts and magazine special sections devoted to Super Lawyers. In 2008, Super Lawyers will reach more than 13 million readers.

Super Lawyers was first published in Minnesota in 1991. William White, attorney and founding publisher, remains the publisher today. Law & Politics is owned by attorney Vance Opperman, the former president of West Publishing.

Super Lawyers can be found online at superlawyers.com, where lawyers can be searched by practice area and location.

]]> http://www.tremblayandsmith.com/2009/12/21/virginia-super-lawyers%c2%ae-magazine-top-attorneys-in-virginia-for-2009/feed/ 0 A higher hurdle: U.S. high court says complaint must state ‘plausible’ set of facts http://www.tremblayandsmith.com/2009/12/21/a-higher-hurdle-u-s-high-court-says-complaint-must-state-%e2%80%98plausible%e2%80%99-set-of-facts/ http://www.tremblayandsmith.com/2009/12/21/a-higher-hurdle-u-s-high-court-says-complaint-must-state-%e2%80%98plausible%e2%80%99-set-of-facts/#comments Mon, 21 Dec 2009 18:50:27 +0000 admin http://www.tremblayandsmith.com/?p=332 From Virginia Lawyers Weekly:

By David Frank and Alan Cooper
Published: June 15, 2009

The U.S. Supreme Court has set a higher hurdle for a plaintiff filing a civil complaint in federal court.

In 2007 the court issued an antitrust case that heightened the standard of proof required to survive a motion to dismiss in federal court.

A new case makes it clear that the higher standard is applicable across the board, according to civil litigators.

On May 18, the Supreme Court in Ashcroft v. Iqbal confirmed that the pleading standard first articulated in Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly two years ago applies to all federal civil complaints.

The court elaborated on its finding in Twombly that a plaintiff must allege enough facts to state a claim for relief that is plausible on its face. The plausibility standard stops short of probability, but “it asks for more than a sheer possibility that a defendant has acted unlawfully,” Justice Anthony Kennedy wrote for the 5-4 majority in Iqbal.

Charlottesville attorney R. Lee Livingston questioned the plausibility concept.

“Plausible is not a term used in the law before,” he said.

Adding it to the equation does little to clarify the law, he added. It merely provides a federal judge with “a new bigger hammer to knock down a case right from the beginning,” he said.

Read more at VA Lawyers Weekly

]]> http://www.tremblayandsmith.com/2009/12/21/a-higher-hurdle-u-s-high-court-says-complaint-must-state-%e2%80%98plausible%e2%80%99-set-of-facts/feed/ 0 R. Lee Livingston http://www.tremblayandsmith.com/attorneys/r-lee-livingston/ http://www.tremblayandsmith.com/attorneys/r-lee-livingston/#comments Tue, 10 Nov 2009 19:24:36 +0000 admin http://www.tremblayandsmith.com/?page_id=19 Lee’s abilities in the courtroom have been recognized by his peers. He is an “AV®” rated lawyer. This is the highest peer review rating bestowed by the Martindale-Hubbell listing service. An “AV” rating identifies a lawyer with very high to preeminent legal ability and very high ethical standards as established by confidential opinions from other lawyers and judges.

In 2007, Lee was included as one of only six “Virginia Rising Stars” in the publication Virginia Super Lawyers (Rising Stars) and Richmond Magazine for his skills in handling medical malpractice cases.  The lawyers selected for inclusion in this prestigious list were nominated and selected as the best up-and-coming lawyers in their practice areas aged 40 years and younger.  Only 2.5% of the total lawyers in Virginia are listed in Rising Stars.  Following this honor, Lee was included in the 2009 and 2010 editions of Virginia Super Lawyers and Richmond Magazine as among the top 5% of lawyers in any age group handling malpractice cases on behalf of plaintiffs.

Mr. Livingston lectures and publishes on topics within his practice area. For a complete list of his presentations and publications see his c.v. here.

Community Service

  • Salvation Army Advisory Board, 2004-2007
  • Elder, Trinity Presbyterian Church

Professional Activities and Memberships

  • Member, Virginia Trial Lawyers Association Board since 1999 and chair of various committees and programs, 50th Anniversary Convention Chair 2010.
  • Virginia State Bar Litigation Section Board of Governors, Chair 2007-2008
  • Appointed by the Virginia Supreme Court to the Virginia State Bar Mandatory Continuing Legal Education Board in 2003, Chair 2008-2009.  This board oversees continuing education requirements for active attorneys in Virginia.
  • Teaches Trial Advocacy and Trial Evidence at the University of Virginia School of Law.
  • Member of the board and faculty of the Virginia College of Trial Advocacy, an annual college that provides instruction in trial techniques to attorneys of all experience levels.  Chaired the program for the College in 2008.
  • Co-author of “Evidence for the Trial Lawyer,” Matthew Bender & Company, Inc., a Lexis/Nexis Company, 2009.
  • Virginia State Bar Litigation Section Litigation News Editor 1997-2003.
  • Member of the Boyd-Graves Conference – a group established by the Virginia Bar Association that recommends changes to the law.
  • Member, Virginia Supreme Court Appellate Rules Advisory Committee, 2005-2008.
  • Virginia Supreme Court Electronic Filing Committee, 2006—.
  • Richmond Magazine, Top Young “Super Lawyers”, 2007 and 2008.
  • Richmond Magazine, Top Attorneys in Virginia “Super Lawyers”, 2009.
  • Listed in top 5% “Super Lawyers” in Virginia (2009-present).
  • Association of Trial Lawyers of America, Top 100 Lawyers in Virginia.

Other activities and memberships include the following: Charlottesville-Albemarle Bar Association Member; Association of Trial Lawyers of America;  Thomas Jefferson Inn of Court (Secretary 1996-1997); Virginia Trial Lawyers Association Foundation Board, 2004-present; American Association for Justice Member.

Biographical History

R. Lee Livingston was born in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, on March 11, 1968. He was admitted to the bar in 1993. Mr. Livingston is a trial attorney who devotes his practice to civil litigation.

  • College of William & Mary, B.A., 1990, J.D, 1993.
  • Judicial Clerk to Hon. B. Waugh Crigler, U.S. Magistrate Judge, 1993-1994.
  • Adjunct Faculty and Lecturer, “Trial Evidence: Principles and Practice,” and “Trial Advocacy,” University of Virginia, 2002 —.
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