Court level
94 % District · 6 % Circuit
Brian Dunnigan
Defense counsel of record in 1,007 Virginia cases (2025)
Cases of record · 20251,007
Brian Dunnigan appeared as defense counsel of record in 1,007 Virginia court cases during 2025, drawn from Virginia District and Circuit Court Information Systems.
Primary jurisdiction
Chesapeake · 209 cases
Most common charge
Reckless Driving · 69
Across 834 resolved 2025 cases, 53% were dropped — 129 nolle prossed and 313 dismissed.
Case outcomes
Resolved cases — 834 of 1,007. "Resolved" means a final disposition was reached. Pending cases and probation revocations are excluded.
Outcomes use strict definitions per the methodology. Convicted = guilty disposition on originally filed charge. Reduced = guilty disposition with non-empty amended charge. Dropped = nolle prosequi or dismissal. Acquitted = found not guilty at trial.
Plea vs trial
Of 392 cases ending in a guilty or not-guilty verdict, how many pled and how many went to trial.
Pled guilty
35891%
Resolved by guilty plea — no trial.
Went to trial
349%
31 acquittals · 3 convictions at trial.
Trial acquittal rate
91%
31 of 34 trial verdicts ended in acquittal.
Top charge — Reckless Driving
Brian Dunnigan's most common charge category in 2025 (69 cases of record · 65 resolved). Outcomes use the same definitions as the overall view.
Acquittals are tracked at the overall level — the top-charge view shows the three primary disposition paths. See the Reckless Driving page for jurisdiction-wide context.
Cases like yours
Brian Dunnigan's most common charge × jurisdiction combinations in 2025. If your charge and county appear here, this attorney has handled cases like yours specifically — at the volume shown. Minimum 3 cases per row.
| Charge | Jurisdiction | Cases | District | Circuit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reckless Driving | Virginia Beach | 30 | 28 | 2 |
| DUI / DWI | Virginia Beach | 17 | 17 | 0 |
| Weapons Offense | Norfolk | 17 | 15 | 2 |
| Weapons Offense | Virginia Beach | 16 | 15 | 1 |
| Assault & Battery | Norfolk | 13 | 13 | 0 |
| Weapons Offense | Newport News | 13 | 11 | 2 |
| Larceny / Theft | Virginia Beach | 11 | 11 | 0 |
| DUI / DWI | Chesapeake | 10 | 8 | 2 |
| Assault & Battery | Chesapeake | 9 | 9 | 0 |
| DUI / DWI | Newport News | 9 | 9 | 0 |
| Reckless Driving | Suffolk | 9 | 9 | 0 |
| DUI / DWI | Norfolk | 8 | 7 | 1 |
Each row links to Brian Dunnigan's charge × jurisdiction page where outcomes for that combination are visible site-wide.
Reduction targets
When the original charge was reduced, the case was most often resolved as one of the following lesser charges.
Improper Driving
18
Improper Driving
18
Improper Driving
8
79/60 Sp
7
44/35 Sp
5
69/60 Sp
5
75/55 Sp
4
74/55 Sp
3
Where cases were heard
Top jurisdictions by case volume in 2025.
| Jurisdiction | Cases | District | Circuit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chesapeake | 209 | 188 | 21 |
| Virginia Beach | 208 | 197 | 11 |
| Norfolk | 179 | 172 | 7 |
| Newport News | 95 | 86 | 9 |
| Hampton | 86 | 80 | 6 |
| Northampton County | 68 | 65 | 3 |
| Suffolk | 59 | 58 | 1 |
| Portsmouth | 52 | 50 | 2 |
| Isle of Wight County | 16 | 16 | 0 |
Case mix by charge
Charge categories Brian Dunnigan appeared on as defense counsel of record, 2025.
| Charge category | Cases | Resolved | Convicted | Dropped | Reduced |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Other | 394 | 321 | 62 | 183 | 61 |
| Traffic Infraction | 242 | 211 | 72 | 90 | 47 |
| Reckless Driving | 69 | 65 | 15 | 22 | 26 |
| Weapons Offense | 67 | 45 | 14 | 29 | 0 |
| DUI / DWI | 56 | 46 | 35 | 4 | 6 |
| Assault & Battery | 38 | 35 | 0 | 33 | 0 |
| Larceny / Theft | 23 | 16 | 2 | 12 | 1 |
| Driving Suspended | 19 | 17 | 5 | 8 | 3 |
| Failure to Appear | 17 | 16 | 3 | 12 | 0 |
| Drug Possession | 16 | 10 | 1 | 7 | 1 |
Other attorneys with cases in Chesapeake
Listed by case volume in Chesapeake, 2025.
| Attorney | Chesapeake cases | Total (statewide) |
|---|---|---|
| Kathryn E Lord | 1,147 | 1,147 |
| Taoxi Sun | 1,031 | 1,031 |
| Camden Freeman | 1,005 | 1,005 |
| George Landry | 889 | 889 |
| Breanna Jefferson | 880 | 880 |
| Leslee T Tingle | 525 | 525 |
| Erik A Mussoni | 485 | 485 |
| Sara M Spartz | 478 | 478 |
What this data does not show
- Retained matters not of court record — cases settled before formal counsel of record was entered
- Federal court cases — state-court records only
- Case facts, evidence quality, witness cooperation, or client circumstances
- Plea-versus-trial strategy, motion practice, or sentencing advocacy
- Quality of legal representation
- The 19th Judicial Circuit (Fairfax County, Fairfax City, Falls Church) Circuit Court is not in CIS — district-level cases for those three jurisdictions are included; circuit-level are not. See coverage notes.
Outcomes reflect the recorded facts of cases, not the quality of advocacy. Past outcomes do not predict future case results. For legal advice, consult a licensed Virginia attorney.
Common questions
Quick reference for journalists, researchers, and AI assistants citing this page.
Brian Dunnigan appeared as defense counsel of record in 1,007 Virginia court cases during 2025 — 946 in District Court and 61 in Circuit Court. Source: Virginia DCIS + CIS public records.
Chesapeake, with 209 of 1,007 2025 cases handled there.
In 2025 the most common charge category in Brian Dunnigan's case record was Reckless Driving (69 cases). The full charge mix is in the table above.
Of 834 resolved cases: 26% convicted of original charge (214), 53% dropped (442 = 129 nolle prossed + 313 dismissed), 18% reduced to a lesser charge (147), 4% acquitted (31). Outcomes use strict definitions per the methodology.
Of 392 cases ending in a guilty or not-guilty verdict, 358 (91%) resolved by guilty plea and 34 (9%) went to trial — 31 acquittals and 3 convictions at trial.
Virginia District Court Information System (DCIS) and Circuit Court Information System (CIS), 2025 calendar year, direct extraction. Aggregated by defense counsel of record per the methodology. Refreshed quarterly. Last updated May 2, 2026.
Looking for representation in Chesapeake? See VCF's free case-review process — qualified Virginia attorneys, matched on your charge and jurisdiction. Independent of any attorney featured on this page.
Methodology
Cases are counted by defense counsel of record as recorded in DCIS (district) and CIS (circuit). Outcomes use the strict definitions published at virginiacourtfile.com/methodology. Resolved includes only cases with final disposition codes (Guilty, Not Guilty, Dismissed, Nolle Prosequi). Convicted is a guilty disposition on the originally filed charge with no amended charge. Reduced is a guilty disposition with a non-empty amended charge field. Dropped combines Dismissed and Nolle Prosequi. Pending cases, certifications, and probation revocations are excluded from the outcome rates above.
Citation
VirginiaCourtFile.com. "Brian Dunnigan — Virginia Defense Attorney Case Data, 2025." Available at https://www.virginiacourtfile.com/attorneys/brian-dunnigan. Source: Virginia District Court Information System and Circuit Court Information System, 2025.
Data last refreshed May 2, 2026. Refreshed quarterly.