Virginia Real Property, Domestic Relations, Criminal Law, and Procedure Review

VOCABULARY flashcards covering Virginia Real Property, Domestic Relations, Criminal Law, Evidence, Civil Procedure, and the UCC as described in the lecture notes.

$Va. Code § 55.1-134$ (Joint Tenancy)

The statute that abolishes the common-law presumption favoring joint tenancy with survivorship; express language is strictly required for survivorship interests to exist.

Tenancy by the Entirety (TBE)

A form of ownership for married spouses requiring unities of time, title, interest, marriage, and possession; it protects property from attachment by individual creditors of only one spouse.

$$Va. Code § 20-111$$

The legal provision that automatically converts a tenancy by the entirety into a tenancy in common upon the entry of a final decree of absolute divorce ($a vinculo matrimonii$).

Partition by Sale

A court order for the sale of property when physical division ($in kind$) cannot be made conveniently or without substantial injury to the parties or property value.

Deed Delivery Rule

Requires donative intent, execution of a written deed, and a present transfer of title; delivery is not presumed if the deed remains in the grantor's sole possession without explicit communication.

Pure Notice Jurisdiction

Virginia's recording act status where a subsequent Bona Fide Purchaser (BFP) for value without notice takes superior title over prior unrecorded interests, regardless of who records first.

Endorsed Check Rule (Statute of Frauds)

The liberal acceptance by Virginia courts of a check made payable to a seller with an explicit memo notation ($\text{e.g., "For purchase of Greenacre"}$) as a writing satisfying the Statute of Frauds.

Part Performance Exception

An equitable doctrine allowing enforcement of oral land contracts if proven by clear and convincing evidence, typically involving payment, open possession, or valuable improvements.

English Covenants of Title ($Va. Code § 55.1-356$)

Statutory covenants including the right to convey, quiet possession, freedom from encumbrances, further assurances, no act to encumber, and seizin in fee simple.

Merger Doctrine

The principle that prior purchase contracts are generally extinguished by the deed, though in Virginia it is narrowly applied only to matters affecting title passage.

$Va. Code § 55.1-305$ (Easement Scope)

Prohibits an easement holder from using the easement inconsistently with the original grant, such as converting a private farm road into a multi-lot subdivision access road.

$Walters v. Smith$ (Implied Boundary Road Rule)

A rule establishing that when a grantor conveys land bounded by a road they retain, the grantee acquires an implied easement for ingress and egress.

$5$-Year Rents/Profits Rule

A restriction preventing a court from ordering a forced sale of real estate to satisfy a judgment if the land's rents and profits can satisfy the debt within $5$ years.

Memorandum of Lis Pendens

A recorded notice in circuit court land records intended to protect a judgment creditor's interest by binding third-party purchasers with constructive notice of a pending action.

Possibility of Reverter

The future interest associated with a fee simple determinable which, in Virginia, is fully devisable, descendible, and alienable $inter vivos$.

No-Fault Divorce Separation Period ($Va. Code § 20-91(A)(9)$)

Requires a separation of $1$ year, or $6$ months if there are no minor children and a written property settlement agreement (PSA) is executed.

Constructive Desertion

A ground for divorce occurring when one spouse's cruelty or neglect causes the other spouse to leave the marital home.

Condonation Defense

An affirmative defense where the complaining spouse, with full knowledge of adultery, forgives the act and resumes cohabitation/sexual relations.

Manifest Injustice Exception ($Va. Code § 20-107.1$)

An exception allowing a court to award spousal support to an adulterous spouse if denial would be unfair based on degree of fault and relative economic positions.

Cranwell Test

A $4$-factor test used to determine if spousal support should terminate due to cohabitation analogous to marriage, evaluating common residence, intimacy, financial support, and duration.

Best Interests of the Child ($Va. Code § 20-124.3$)

The statutory standard governing all custody and visitation decisions, considering the age/condition of child and parents and the child's needs.

$Griffin v. Griffin$ Framework

A two-step process for non-parent visitation: the non-parent must first prove denial causes actual harm by clear and convincing evidence before the court considers the child's best interests.

$Kelley v. Kelley$ (Child Support)

A case ruling that parents cannot contract away or waive child support, as the rights belong to the child and such agreements are void as against public policy.

Active Appreciation ($Va. Code § 20-107.3$)

The principle that separate property growth becomes marital if personal effort or marital funds contributed significantly to the increase in value.

$Shooltz v. Shooltz$ (Valuation Date)

Establishes that assets are valued as of the date of the evidentiary hearing and confirms the court's discretion to reopen hearings to revalue assets prior to the final decree.

Grand Larceny Threshold ($Va. Code § 18.2-95$)

The statutory limit set at taking property valued at $1,000$ or more, or taking property valued at $5$ or more directly from the person of another.

Embezzlement ($Va. Code § 18.2-111$)

The fraudulent conversion of property by someone lawfully entrusted with its possession, punishable as larceny.

Criminal Attempt

Requires (1) the specific intent to commit a particular crime and (2) a direct, ineffectual act done toward its commission beyond mere preparation.

Virginia Conspiracy Rule

A conspiracy is complete upon shared intent and agreement to commit a felony; unlike common law, no overt act is required.

Principal in the Second Degree ($Va. Code § 18.2-18$)

A person present, aiding, abetting, or encouraging a crime who is tried and punished as if they were the principal in the first degree.

Transferred Intent

The legal doctrine where the intent to commit a crime against one person transfers to the actual victim if the crime is accidentally committed against another.

Voluntary Intoxication Defense Exception

In Virginia, voluntary intoxication can only negate specific intent to reduce first-degree murder to second-degree murder by negating premeditation.

Standard for Investigatory Stop ($Terry v. Ohio$)

Requires reasonable, articulable suspicion that criminal activity is afoot; a protective pat-down (frisk) requires suspicion that the suspect is armed and dangerous.

$Va. Code § 19.2-257$ (Bench Trial Waiver)

A statute providing that a defendant's waiver of a jury trial requires the consent of both the Commonwealth (prosecutor) and the trial court.

$Va. Code § 16.1-269.1$ (Juvenile Transfer)

The jurisdictional requirement that the JDR District Court must conduct a transfer hearing before a juvenile age $14$ or older can be tried as an adult.

Confidential Marital Communications Privilege ($Va. Code § 8.01-398$)

A privilege in civil and criminal cases allowing either spouse to prevent disclosure of confidential statements made during the marriage with no third parties present.

Demurrer ($Va. Code § 8.01-273$)

A defensive pleading that tests the facial legal sufficiency of a complaint, admitting the truth of material facts but not legal conclusions.

Plea in Bar ($Va. Code § 8.01-336(B)$)

A defensive pleading that reduces litigation to a single discrete issue of fact that creates an absolute bar to recovery; it triggers a statutory right to a jury trial.

Long-Arm Jurisdiction ($Va. Code § 8.01-328.1$)

Requires satisfying an enumerated statutory provision and establishing minimum contacts satisfying constitutional Due Process.

GDC Monetary Jurisdiction ($Va. Code § 16.1-77$)

The General District Court has exclusive jurisdiction up to $4,500$ and concurrent jurisdiction with the Circuit Court up to $50,000$.

Municipal Sovereign Immunity

Localities are immune when performing governmental functions (safety, health, welfare) but liable for ordinary negligence in proprietary functions (routine maintenance, commercial activities).

Virginia Dead Man's Statute ($Va. Code § 8.01-397$)

Prohibits a judgment in favor of an interested party based solely on their uncorroborated testimony in actions involving a deceased or incapable person.

Spencer Standard

The Virginia standard for expert reliability that focuses on general acceptance and proven reliability, rejecting the federal Daubert standard.

$$Shopbook Rule$$

The Virginia business records exception requiring evidence that records were made at or near the time by someone with knowledge in the regular course of business.

Dillon's Rule ($Va. Code § 15.2-1400$)

The rule of strict construction stating that localities possess only powers expressly granted by the General Assembly, necessarily implied, or essential.

SAGA (Vested Rights)

Significant Affirmative Governmental Act; required (along with good faith and substantial expenditures) for a landowner to acquire vested rights in a zoning use.

Predominant Purpose Test

The test used to determine if the UCC or common law governs a hybrid contract by evaluating the allocation of price between labor and materials.

Perfect Tender Rule ($Va. Code § 8.2-601$)

If goods fail to conform to the contract in any respect, the buyer may reject the whole, accept the whole, or accept any commercial units and reject the rest.

Virginia Anti-Privity Statute ($Va. Code § 8.2-318$)

A law that eliminates lack of privity as a defense, allowing any foreseeable user, family member, or bystander to sue for breach of warranty.

Heart Balm Act ($Va. Code § 8.01-220(A)$)

The statute that abolished the causes of action for breach of promise to marry, alienation of affection, and criminal conversation.