Michael S. Whitlow
Phone: 540-904-7835 |
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Will, Trust and Estate Litigation Read more about this area of Practice >>
- Obtained a judgment imposing a constructive trust on assets that should have gone to clients upon their father's death based on an agreement made by their father.
- Successfully proved an oral contract to make a will at trial.
- Obtained judgment against administrators of estate for improper distributions and breach of fiduciary duty.
- Successfully mediated estate dispute involving a will with multiple nonprobate assets.
- Represented beneficiaries of trust and wills in suits against fiduciaries to remove them for beach of fiduciary duties, and to force compliance with fiduciary duties.
- Successfully defended beneficiary of multi-million dollar estate against claims of undue influence.
- Obtained significant settlements for plaintiffs challenging wills on the bases of incompetency and undue influence.
- Terminated irrevocable trusts that had become subject to administrative fees that were excessive and unnecessary.
- Challenged a will on the basis of mental incompetency and undue influence; defendant ultimately agreed that will was invalid without going to trial.
- Helped beneficiaries obtain distributions from estate when personal representative refused to make distributions.
Real Estate Litigation Read more about this area of Practice >>
- Represented defendant in multiple breach of contract case that was successfully mediated.
- Defended a prescriptive easement sui.t that was settled with client’s attorneys fees paid as part of the settlement.
- Represented multiple clients in partition suits involving co-owners of real estate.
- Regularly represent landlords in unlawful detainer actions to recover possession and obtain judgment for unpaid rent and costs.
- Defended homeowner in suit by developer to enforce restrictive covenants of subdivision.
- Successfully settled a boundary line dispute where part of settlement was client obtaining drainfield easement on disputed property.
Environmental Law and Litigation Read more about this area of Practice >>
- Assisted multiple clients in obtaining liability comfort letters from Virginia Department of Environmental Quality.
- Successfully defended owner of gasoline/convenience store relating to water well contamination.
- Represented purchaser of abandoned industrial site as Brownfield site, including successful completion of Virginia Voluntary Remediation Program.
- Represented owner of industrial site in analyzing liability related to environmental condition of property and potential sale.
- Reorganized corporate structure of client to maximize benefits under Virginia Petroleum Underground Storage Tank Fund.
Commercial Litigation Read more about this area of Practice >>
- Obtained arbitration award for homeowners in suit against construction contractor.
- Represented large banking institution in collection suits against defaulting borrowers.
- Represented national hotel chain in dispute with licensee over termination of license agreement and fees due and owing.
Commercial Real Estate Read more about this area of Practice >>
- Represented seller of multiple convenience store locations, including advising and negotiating related to environmental issues.
- Represented national company in the sale of its Salem, Virginia facility.
- Represented seller in multi-party transaction for construction of a retail facility for large retailer.
- Negotiated multiple leases for franchise company in shopping malls and related facilities.