TransDulles Center, Inc. v. Sharma

In this dispute arising from a commercial lease, the sole question on appeal is whether the trial court correctly refused to apply the doctrine of collateral estoppel in favor of a party obtaining a default judgment in a prior action.

In March 1993, appellant TransDulles Center, Inc., the landlord, obtained a default judgment in the Loudoun County General District Court in an unlawful detainer action against appellee, Dr. Yash Sharma, t/a Panbaxy Laboratories, Inc., the tenant. Based on the terms of a five-year commercial lease, the landlord sought possession of the demised premises located in…