Is There a Deadline for a Civil Matter to be Heard?

[MissV]

What is the name of your state? Virginia

So I challenged the Virginia Real Estate Commission when they denied me a license to be a broker. Paperwork filed in November 2019 and still no court date. Is there a law that limits how long before a case can be heard by a Judge?

 

[Just Blue]

What is the name of your state? Virginia

So I challenged the Virginia Real Estate Commission when they denied me a license to be a broker. Paperwork filed in November 2019 and still no court date. Is there a law that limits how long before a case can be heard by a Judge?

Do you have an attorney? What reason was given for the denial? When were you denied?

 

[MissV]

Thanks for responding. Yes I have an attorney who seems less than thrilled to be involved, because filing against a state agency means that the defendant is the Attorney General of Virginia.

 

[Zigner]

Thanks for responding. Yes I have an attorney who seems less than thrilled to be involved, because filing against a state agency means that the defendant is the Attorney General of Virginia.

Ask your attorney. Really.

 

[MissV]

Oh, I'm sorry. I misunderstood what you meant by denial.

I'm licensed in NC. To be licensed in VA I had to pass their State licensing exam (done). Gave fingerprints. Then met with only one of the commission members, who asked me questions, such as "how much money did you make last year"? Staff told her she couldn't ask that. So then she asked about my Prelicense course (nearly 20 years old). Couldn't find the syllabus. Have had no problems in NC (I'm a Graduate of the Realtors Institute and Certified Distance Education Instructor). So since I can't 'prove' that I know about appraisals (which any of us must, since I teach all over the state), this Commission used it as a reason to deny and wants me to take one of their courses.

 

[MissV]

I was denied in September 2019.

 

[MissV]

Ask your attorney. Really.

All 'my' attorney says is 'no I haven't heard anything'.

 

[zddoodah]

Paperwork filed in November 2019 and still no court date.

What "paperwork" did you file?

Did you file a complaint and have a summons issued, and did you serve the summons and complaint on the defendant? If so, when did that happen? Did the defendant file an answer or other responsive pleading? If so, when did that happen? What have you done since then to move the case along? What did your lawyer say when you discussed this with him?

Is there a law that limits how long before a case can be heard by a Judge?

Probably. In my state, a civil lawsuit is subject to dismissal if not brought to trial within five years after the complaint is filed. I assume, but don't know for sure, that other states have similar rules.

That said, most states' civil courts have slowed to a crawl over the last 11 months.

I have an attorney who seems less than thrilled to be involved, because filing against a state agency means that the defendant is the Attorney General of Virginia.

Titularly, yes, but you can be assured that the state AG will have little or nothing to do with your case. If this intimidates your lawyer, then you might want to consider hiring someone else.

 

[Taxing Matters]

What is the name of your state? Virginia

So I challenged the Virginia Real Estate Commission when they denied me a license to be a broker. Paperwork filed in November 2019 and still no court date. Is there a law that limits how long before a case can be heard by a Judge?

Virginia has a law that sets a time of 60 days for a judge to make a decision in a case after the filing of a "matter, claim, motion, or issue that has been submitted to the court for a decision and if the judge cannot meet that time then the judge is to issue a report to the parties stating when that decision will be forthcoming. Parties who believe the decision is being unreasonably delayed after that 60 days may complain to the Supreme Court and the Supreme Court may appoint a judge to assist in getting that decision out. See Virginia Code § 17.1-107. But I see no provision setting a time by which the court must set a trial. Indeed, it would difficult to set a hard deadline for that since the course of litigation in every case is different and in some cases, for example, there may be substantial pre-trial activity that takes months or even years before everyone is ready for trial. The courts of the jurisdictions in which I practice were closed for trials for quite sometime in 2020 due to covid-19 resulting in a back log of trials that are now being scheduled, which of course means that there have been significant delays in many cases getting to trial. I'd not be surprised to find that the Virginia courts are also facing trial backlogs for the same reason.

 

[quincy]

Oh, I'm sorry. I misunderstood what you meant by denial.

I'm licensed in NC. To be licensed in VA I had to pass their State licensing exam (done). Gave fingerprints. Then met with only one of the commission members, who asked me questions, such as "how much money did you make last year"? Staff told her she couldn't ask that. So then she asked about my Prelicense course (nearly 20 years old). Couldn't find the syllabus. Have had no problems in NC (I'm a Graduate of the Realtors Institute and Certified Distance Education Instructor). So since I can't 'prove' that I know about appraisals (which any of us must, since I teach all over the state), this Commission used it as a reason to deny and wants me to take one of their courses.

What is your reason for not wanting to take the Virginia course?

 

[MissV]

Did the defendant file an answer or other responsive pleading? If so, when did that happen? What have you done since then to move the case along? What did your lawyer say when you discussed this with him?

All good questions. Thank you. I'm not aware of any response from the defendant. And you're right - I don't expect the AG to respond directly. I don't/didn't know if I should get involved more, because I assume I would harm my case.

 

[Taxing Matters]

Probably. In my state, a civil lawsuit is subject to dismissal if not brought to trial within five years after the complaint is filed. I assume, but don't know for sure, that other states have similar rules.[/QUOTES]

Some states do, some don't. Where I practice there is no such rule.

 

[zddoodah]

All good questions. Thank you. I'm not aware of any response from the defendant. And you're right - I don't expect the AG to respond directly. I don't/didn't know if I should get involved more, because I assume I would harm my case.

There are certain things that the plaintiff in a civil lawsuit must do to move the case along. However, where, as here, the plaintiff is represented by counsel, it's the lawyer's job. Your statement that, "All 'my' attorney says is 'no I haven't heard anything,'" is highly concerning (although I'm not sure what this is a response to).

 

[MissV]

Virginia has a law that sets a time of 60 days for a judge to make a decision in a case after the filing of a "matter, claim, motion, or issue that has been submitted to the court for a decision and if the judge cannot meet that time then the judge is to issue a report to the parties stating when that decision will be forthcoming. Parties who believe the decision is being unreasonably delayed after that 60 days may complain to the Supreme Court and the Supreme Court may appoint a judge to assist in getting that decision out. See Virginia Code § 17.1-107. But I see no provision setting a time by which the court must set a trial. Indeed, it would difficult to set a hard deadline for that since the course of litigation in every case is different and in some cases, for example, there may be substantial pre-trial activity that takes months or even years before everyone is ready for trial. The courts of the jurisdictions in which I practice were closed for trials for quite sometime in 2020 due to covid-19 resulting in a back log of trials that are now being scheduled, which of course means that there have been significant delays in many cases getting to trial. I'd not be surprised to find that the Virginia courts are also facing trial backlogs for the same reason.

Thank you. This helps a lot. I sought assistance through a group thru the Virginia Bar Association (I believe). The closest real estate attorney I could get was a person who heard death penalty cases.

 

[MissV]

There are certain things that the plaintiff in a civil lawsuit must do to move the case along. However, where, as here, the plaintiff is represented by counsel, it's the lawyer's job. Your statement that, "All 'my' attorney says is 'no I haven't heard anything,'" is highly concerning (although I'm not sure what this is a response to).

That was the response from my attorney when I last talked with him in 2020. Since then he hasn't responded to my email. I've tried to get a real estate attorney in VA. Since he's holding some of my money in case we ask to have it closer to where he lives, I'm wondering if I just need to hunker down and hire a real estate attorney who isn't afraid to stir the pot.