Robert B. “Chip” Delano, Jr.
Shareholder
Experience
Practices
Industries
Background
Education
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College of William & Mary
J.D., Order of the Coif, 1981 -
College of William & Mary
B.A., 1978
Admissions
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Virginia
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U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
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U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia
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U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia
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U.S. Supreme Court
About
Biography
Chip Delano concentrates his practice in the areas of tort, insurance, and appellate litigation. He devotes a considerable portion of his practice to life, health, and disability insurance/ERISA litigation pending in state and federal courts. His life and health litigation experience includes matters involving:
- ERISA
- Coverage
- Lapse for nonpayment of premiums
- Suicide
- Total and/or partial disability
- Accidental death or bodily injury
- Overseas death claims
- Material misrepresentations by the insured
- Conditional receipts / temporary insurance applications and agreements
- Bad faith
- Stop loss
- Interpleader
- Application of Virginia’s slayer statute and its related common law rule
- Claims of waiver and/or estoppel against the agent and/or insurer
Chip has extensive appellate experience before Virginia’s highest appellate court, the Supreme Court of Virginia. After having served there as a law clerk, in private practice he has personally handled over 40 appeals before that Court, fourteen of which were full appeals with oral argument, and thirteen of which resulted in published opinions. Chip is a certified appellate mediator for the Supreme Court of Virginia. He has also represented clients in numerous federal appeals in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit and the Supreme Court of the United States.
Chip has significant experience in advising and representing insurance companies and their insureds in insurance coverage, tort, and/or bad faith claims.
Community Service Highlights
- Get to know Chip in his video interview with the Virginia State Bar recognizing his community service with the Boy Scouts of America as part of their “Virginia is for Good Lawyers: The Big Picture” program.
Recognition
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Virginia Lawyers Weekly "Leaders in the Law",
2018 -
AV by Martindale-Hubbell, the highest possible designation
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"Best Lawyers in America©"
in Appellate Practice, ERISA Litigation, and Insurance Law -
Virginia Business magazine "Legal Elite" in Appellate Law
2008 – 2020 -
"Super Lawyers®"
2011- 2020
Involvement
Professional Affiliations
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American Bar Association - Tort and Insurance Practice and Litigation Section; Life Insurance Law Committee; Health and Disability Insurance Law Committee
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The Association of Life Insurance Counsel - Board of Governors & ABA Delegate, 2008 - 2011
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Bar Association of the City of Richmond
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Defense Research Institute - Past Board Liaison to the DRI Life, Health & Disability Committee, 2007 – present; Board of Directors, 2004 – 2007; Mid-Atlantic Regional Director, 2004 – 2007; Virginia State Representative, 1998 – 2002; Community Service Award, 2008; Life, Health and Disability Committee; Insurance Law Committee; Appellate Advocacy Committee
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Federal Bar Association
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Fourth Circuit Judicial Conference
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Virginia Association of Defense Attorneys - President 2002-2003, President-Elect 2001-2002, Treasurer 2000-2001, Secretary 1999-2000, Board of Directors 1995-2004, Appellate Advocacy Section, Policy Coverage Section, Auto and Transportation Liability Section
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Virginia Bar Association - Appellate Practice Section Council, Civil Litigation Section
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Virginia State Bar - Appellate Practice Committee, Litigation Section
Community Service
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Boy Scouts of America
50 year Veteran award -
DRI Community Service Award
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Recognized for community service with Boy Scouts by Virginia State Bar's "Virginia is for Good Lawyers" program, 2009
Publications
Publications by Robert B. “Chip” Delano, Jr.
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Overview of Standards of Appellate Review in Virginia
The Journal of Civil Litigation, Vol. 31 Issue 3, Fall 2019 -
Who Gets The Money? The Widow or the Former Wife: An Analysis of Virginia Code Section 20-111.1 and the Body of Law Developed Over the Past Quarter of a Century on its Automatic Statutory Revocation-on-Divorce of Beneficiary Designations
The Journal of Civil Litigation, Vol. 21 Issue 1, Winter 2019 -
Virginia Best Practices in Handling Pleas of the Statute of Limitations and/or Contractual Limitations Period in an Action on a Life Insurance Policy
Virginia State Bar Litigation News, Vol. 18 Issue 3, May 2018 -
The Law of Life Insurance: Key Issues in Each State
DRI, 2017, Book Editor and Contributor -
Primer on Virginia Law Related to a Claim on a Life Insurance Policy
The Journal of Civil Litigation, Vol. 18 Issue 4, Winter 2016-2017 -
Does the Adoption of the Proposed Insured Divest the Biological Parents from Having an Insurable Interest in the Child's Life After Adoption?
The Journal of Civil Litigation, Vol. 18 Issue 4, Winter 2016-2017 -
Varity Corp. v. Howe: Alive and Well Despite Amara!
The Voice, Vol. 15 Issue 4, January 27, 2016 -
Best Practices in Virginia for Preservation of Appellate Error
The Journal of Civil Litigation, 2015 -
Material Misrepresentations in the Application Limit Life Insurer's Obligations Under Temporary Life Insurance Agreement to Premium Refund
DRI Life, Health and Disability News, Summer 2014 -
Primer on Virginia Law Dealing with Material Misrepresentations in Applications for Life, Health, and Disability Policies
The Journal of Civil Litigation, 2014 -
Once ERISA, Always ERISA: Does ERISA Preemption Still Apply to Claims Under Continuation and Conversion Policies?
DRI Life, Health and Disability News, Spring 2014 -
Effect of Administrator's Noncompliance with Its Own Claims Manual in ERISA Benefits Litigation
DRI Life, Health and Disability News, September 2012 -
The Virginia Law Chapter
Misrepresentations in Life, Health and Disability Insurance Application Process: A National Survey, ABA 2009 & 2015 Editions -
The Misrepresentation Chapter
Insurance Law of Virginia, 2002, 2009 & 2015 Editions -
Death from prescription narcotic overdose: Was it accidental?
Virginia Medical Law Report, May 2008 -
Overdose of Oxycontin and other Painkillers: Latest Round of Accidental Death Litigation
DRI Life, Health and Disability News, Winter 2008 -
Oxycontin Overdose Deaths: Virginia's Latest Trend in Accidental Death Coverage Litigation?
The Journal of Civil Litigation, 2008 -
The Insurance Law Chapter
The Virginia Lawyer , 1990, 1993 & 1996 Editions -
An Overview of the Illegality Defense: Why Crime Still Does Not Pay in Virginia
The Journal of Civil Litigation, 1992
News by Robert B. “Chip” Delano, Jr.
- Why It Matters How Much Money Your Retained Expert Has Been Paid In Prior Unrelated Cases
- Who Gets The Money? The Widow or the Former Wife: An Analysis of Virginia Code Section 20-111.1
- Supreme Court of Virginia Opinion Summary: Anderson v. Warden
- Varity Corp. v. Howe: Alive and Well Despite Amara!
- Early Termination of Annuities Not Permitted
News About Robert B. “Chip” Delano, Jr.
- Why It Matters How Much Money Your Retained Expert Has Been Paid In Prior Unrelated Cases
- Forty Sands Anderson Lawyers Named to 2020 Virginia Business Legal Elite
- 21 Sands Anderson attorneys named to 2021 Best Lawyers® List
- Eighteen Sands Anderson Attorneys Named to 2020 Virginia Super Lawyers®
- Forty Sands Anderson Lawyers Named to 2019 Virginia Business Legal Elite
- 21 Sands Anderson attorneys named to 2020 Best Lawyers® List
- Twenty Sands Anderson Attorneys Included in 2019 Super Lawyers® List
- Thirty-One Sands Anderson Lawyers Named to 2018 Virginia Business Legal Elite
- Robert B. "Chip" Delano, Jr. and David G. Boyce Selected for Virginia Lawyers Weekly's 2018 Honors
- 23 Sands Anderson attorneys named to 2019 Best Lawyers® list