J. Lloyd Snook, III

Practice Areas

Criminal Law; State and Federal Trials; State and Federal Appeals; Personal Injury Law; Automobile Accidents; Driving While Intoxicated; Traffic Violations; Wrongful Death; Civil Litigation; Wills

Biography

Lloyd Snook grew up in Charlottesville, graduating from Lane High School in 1970.  He then went to Stanford University, and graduated in 1974 with an A.B. in Economics.   He worked as an investment analyst for two years before going to the University of Michigan School of Law.  While at Michigan, he was a member of Phi Delta Phi, a finalist in the Moot Court competition, and Administrative Editor of the first volume of the Michigan Yearbook of International Legal Studies, 1978-1979. He concentrated his studies in criminal and constitutional law, and graduated cum laude in 1979.  He and Sheila Haughey were married the day after they graduated from the University of Michigan School of Law.

Lloyd and Sheila came back to Charlottesville, and Lloyd began to practice law with the firm of Lowe and Gordon, Ltd., and he began representing men on Virginia’s Death Row.  When he began his own firm in 1985, he was handling the appeals for five men on Death Row.  He argued two of those cases to the United States Supreme Court; he won one ( Turner v. Murray, 476 U.S. 28 (1986); the oral argument can be heard here ) and lost one ( Smith v. Murray, 477 U.S. 527 (1986); the oral argument can be heard here).  In 1989, Sheila joined him in private practice, and the firm became Snook & Haughey, P.C.

After dealing with appeals of cases where the main issue always seemed to be ineffective assistance of counsel, Lloyd decided to shift his focus from appeals to trials.  Over the years he has represented more than 100 people charged with murder, most of them at trial.  He has focused on trial advocacy — how to persuade a jury to vote in a way that they might not have expected to when they sat in the jury box.  This interest in trial advocacy has carried over into both his criminal and his civil trial work.

Now his practice emphasizes major felony trials, car accident cases, malpractice cases, and estate matters — writing wills, settling estates, and handling estate litigation.

Lloyd has been active with local, state and national bar associations.  He served as the Trial Notes Editor, Virginia Trial Lawyers Association Journal, 1990-2000;  during that time he wrote many articles for the VTLA Journal, including “DNA Evidence After Spencer v. Commonwealth,” VTLA Journal, Jan. 1990.  He has also served on the Continuing Legal Education Committee of the VTLA.  He served as President of the Charlottesville-Albemarle Criminal Bar Association, and was President of the Charlottesville-Albemarle Bar Association for the 2012-2013 year.  He is also active in the American Association for Justice, the Virginia Trial Lawyers Association, the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, and the Virginia Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers.  He is a frequent lecturer on topics in criminal law, constitutional law and trial practice. He was recently named to the list of “SuperLawyers” in Virginia for criminal law.

In addition to his legal activities, Lloyd was elected to the Charlottesville City Council in 2019, and is presently serving as Mayor of the City of Charlottesville. He is active in his church, St. Paul’s Memorial Episcopal Church, where he is finishing his third stint on the Vestry. He also sings bass in the St. Paul’s Chancel Choir. He has been a Cub Scout leader, a Boy Scout leader, a Sunday School teacher, and a baseball, softball and soccer coach.    He has been Chair of the Charlottesville Democratic Party, and has served on the Central Committee of the Democratic Party of Virginia.  He and Sheila have three grown children and one adorable grandson.

Before his election as Councilor, Lloyd was a frequent analyst for local and national television stations on matters involving criminal and constitutional law.