May 20 - 4 pm

This virtual program highlights the Pro Bono Work to Empower and Represent (POWER) Act which promotes efforts to empower survivors of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking through pro bono legal services. This program is supported by federal courts across the country including the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia.

Register here.

• Saad Amin
• Jessika Rose Antinori
• Michael Berdan
• Maria Jeannine Colombo Murillo*
• Michael A. Coogen Jr.
• Randolph T. Critzer Jr.
• Kristina A. Cruz Skidmore
• Russell A. King Jr.
• Susan  Mathis*
• James S. McMahan*
• Samuel Porter
• William Vaughan Riggenbach
• Alaine E. Setter*
• Stella Son Villalobos
• Joseph Larry Wilson II

* Paralegal member

Take the first exit on Route '26, a trial lawyer's road trip. Exit 1 on May 13 takes you to the Pre-Litigation Strategy Lab - Turning Intakes into Income. Allyson Kitchel is driving this seminar, led by outstanding Virginia speakers on these critical topics:

Starting Cases Right: best practices for client intake, trust-building, boundary-setting, and a first 30-days checklist to preserve evidence and avoid costly delays.

Client Education and Risk Management: Key written disclosures to keep clients informed, prevent social media missteps, and protect your firm from lien surprises.

Video Evidence Strategies: How to locate and secure public and private camera footage before it disappears.

On-Board or Refer? Issue Spotting Across Practice Areas: A crash course in quickly evaluating calls for practice areas you might not handle today (med mal, workers' comp, premises liability, civil rights) with a take home cheat sheet for intake staff.

Coordinating Health Insurance Benefits in Virginia: Navigating the regulatory framework, fighting the latest improper billing practices.

Pre-Litigation Negotiation Tactics: Practical strategies for both small to mid-value cases and catastrophic cases.

Drive away with a new map you can use right away. The seminar is in person in Reston and also available virtually. Register here.

Military & Medicare Advantage Liens
Learning Lab Live Webinar
April 23 - 4 pm

In this installment of our Learning Lab live webinar series, Dave Place will help you answer these important questions in one informative hour:

• How do I get the lien amount?
• Do I sign the Attorney Agreement to Protect Letter?
• How can I get a final number from Medicare before mediation?
• What if the military won’t respond?
• If we don’t pay, what will happen?

Register here.

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Advanced Family Law Paralegal Retreat
April 24-25 - Fredericksburg

This advanced retreat is a guided journey through a family law case, told chapter by chapter - from the first client intake to closing the file. We’ll go beyond fundamentals to focus on a paralegal’s critical role in shaping case narrative, managing complex client dynamics, supporting trial strategy, and maintaining ethical and professional standards throughout emotionally charged litigation.

Register here.

The legal profession is home to eye-opening rates of mental health and substance abuse issues. You probably know someone dealing with depression, anger, anxiety, stress, compassion fatigue, grief, or even dementia. Or others who might be battling addictions. Trial lawyers and those in our world - whether in the judiciary, office or at home - are may be struggling more than most.

VTLA is proud to be a part of the solution. Each year, your Association donates $20,000 to VJLAP (Virginia Judges and Lawyers Assistance Program) to serve you and your colleagues, making us the largest private bar contributor to the program.

At our convention last month, pictured above, outgoing president Derrick Walker presents Charlene P. Reilly from VJLAP with our support for 2026.

If you need help or know someone who needs help, call the 24-hour hotline at 877-545-4682.

Help from VJLAP is 100% free, confidential and non-disciplinary services, and includes short-term and long-term counseling and crisis management, intervention assistance, assessments, referrals to outside resources, long-term aftercare case management and follow up, as well as ongoing support.

Some of Virginia’s top family law attorneys came together at the end of February for our Advanced Family Law Retreat, held at the beautiful Boar's Head Resort in Charlottesville. The program brought together experts from across the legal landscape to tackle some of the most complex, frustrating, and ethically charged issues facing family law practitioners today. Check out some of the photos here!

A special thank you to this year’s retreat chair, Laurel Via, for planning an incredible program. We’re also grateful to all who spoke, attended, and sponsored the event - your support made the retreat a true success.

Don't miss our upcoming retreat, May 1-2 in Fredericksburg. Chaired by Bob Byrne and Anthony Greene, this retreat offers a unique opportunity to focus on running and growing your business - we'll talk about finances, marketing, referrals, and more.

Hear from experts and colleagues as they share real-world successes and cautions, and take part in interactive roundtable discussions where you can dive deeper into each topic.

Register here.

• Melissa Ray - President
• Paul Hernandez - President-Elect
• Erin Jewell - Vice President
• Amy Griggs - Vice President
• Brody Reid - Vice President
• Julie Gerock - Vice President
• Les Bowers - Treasurer
• David Irvine - Parliamentarian

More than 500+ people "answered the call" last month by gathering at The Greenbrier for VTLA's 67^th Annual Convention. From speaking and sponsoring to planning, exhibiting, and attending—you made it unforgettable. It was a powerful time of connection, inspiration, learning, and a chance to pause and remember why we do what we do.

Did you miss convention altogether or wishing you could re-watch some of the amazing sessions? We currently have 5 programs available to watch on-demand here.

  

Relive the fun and check out our convention photo album here!

We can’t wait to do it all again—join us at The Homestead, March 17–20, 2027!

Get your kicks on VTLA’s Route '26!

Ride along on our Route in '26 toward adjusting, improving and even changing the way you handle your cases. Join us for a series of programs and arrive at the end with new ideas, fewer jams and new views. Hop in and we’ll see you along the way! Find out more and register here.