Court level
72 % District · 28 % Circuit
Paula Hough
Defense counsel of record in 420 Virginia cases (2025)
Cases of record · 2025420
Paula Hough appeared as defense counsel of record in 420 Virginia court cases during 2025, drawn from Virginia District and Circuit Court Information Systems.
Primary jurisdiction
Henrico County · 373 cases
Most common charge
Larceny / Theft · 72
Case outcomes
Resolved cases — 278 of 420. "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 · Circuit Court
Of 42 Circuit Court cases ending in a guilty or not-guilty verdict, how many pled and how many went to trial. General District Court records do not distinguish a guilty plea from a bench-trial conviction, so this record is limited to Circuit Court, where the distinction is recorded.
Pled guilty
3788%
Resolved by guilty plea — no trial.
Went to trial
512%
1 acquittals · 4 convictions at trial.
Trial acquittal rate
20%
1 of 5 trial verdicts ended in acquittal.
Top charge — Larceny / Theft
Paula Hough's most common charge category in 2025 (72 cases of record · 57 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 Larceny / Theft page for jurisdiction-wide context.
Cases like yours
Paula Hough'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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Larceny / Theft | Henrico County | 71 | 66 | 5 |
| Drug Possession | Henrico County | 41 | 26 | 15 |
| Weapons Offense | Henrico County | 18 | 13 | 5 |
| Failure to Appear | Henrico County | 11 | 0 | 11 |
| Trespassing | Henrico County | 10 | 10 | 0 |
| DUI / DWI | Henrico County | 9 | 9 | 0 |
| Assault & Battery | Henrico County | 7 | 6 | 1 |
| Contempt of Court | Henrico County | 7 | 0 | 7 |
| Obstruction | Henrico County | 7 | 6 | 1 |
| Reckless Driving | Henrico County | 5 | 3 | 2 |
| Burglary / B&E | Henrico County | 4 | 4 | 0 |
| Fraud / Forgery | Henrico County | 3 | 3 | 0 |
See also
Larceny / Theft outcomes in Henrico County — every attorney's 2025 outcomes for Larceny / Theft cases in Henrico County, using the same definitions as above.
Reduction targets
When the original charge was reduced, the case was most often resolved as one of the following lesser charges.
Defective Speedometer
5
Speeding 20/More Over Limit
4
Improper Driving
3
Improper Driving
2
54/45 Sp
1
54/45 Speeding In Work Zone
1
70/60 Speeding In Work Zone
1
74-55 Sp
1
Where cases were heard
Top jurisdictions by case volume in 2025.
| Jurisdiction | Cases | District | Circuit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Henrico County | 373 | 259 | 114 |
| Richmond City | 13 | 12 | 1 |
| Chesterfield County | 10 | 10 | 0 |
| Charles City County | 7 | 7 | 0 |
| Hanover County | 6 | 6 | 0 |
| New Kent County | 5 | 5 | 0 |
| Brunswick County | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| King and Queen County | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Williamsburg | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Case mix by charge
Charge categories Paula Hough appeared on as defense counsel of record, 2025.
| Charge category | Cases | Resolved | Convicted | Dropped | Reduced |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Other | 166 | 91 | 38 | 42 | 8 |
| Larceny / Theft | 72 | 57 | 32 | 24 | 1 |
| Drug Possession | 42 | 26 | 13 | 12 | 1 |
| Traffic Infraction | 41 | 35 | 7 | 13 | 15 |
| Weapons Offense | 19 | 12 | 6 | 6 | 0 |
| Failure to Appear | 11 | 8 | 5 | 2 | 0 |
| Trespassing | 11 | 10 | 4 | 6 | 0 |
| DUI / DWI | 10 | 9 | 6 | 0 | 3 |
| Reckless Driving | 9 | 9 | 1 | 5 | 3 |
| Obstruction | 7 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
Other attorneys with cases in Henrico County
Listed by case volume in Henrico County, 2025.
| Attorney | Henrico County cases | Total (statewide) |
|---|---|---|
| Christopher Bain | 759 | 965 |
| Benjamin Shute | 743 | 838 |
| Dontae Buck | 679 | 765 |
| Nikita Wolf | 656 | 1,019 |
| Gregory Hough | 637 | 730 |
| Wes Simon | 620 | 658 |
| Michael Caudill | 614 | 681 |
| Jeff Everhart | 606 | 610 |
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.
Paula Hough appeared as defense counsel of record in 420 Virginia court cases during 2025 — 304 in District Court and 116 in Circuit Court. Source: Virginia DCIS + CIS public records.
Henrico County, with 373 of 420 2025 cases handled there.
In 2025 the most common charge category in Paula Hough's case record was Larceny / Theft (72 cases). The full charge mix is in the table above.
Of 278 resolved cases: 42% convicted of original charge (118), 44% dropped (122 = 72 nolle prossed + 50 dismissed), 11% reduced to a lesser charge (31), 2% acquitted (7). Outcomes use strict definitions per the methodology.
Of 42 Circuit Court cases ending in a guilty or not-guilty verdict (Circuit Court is the only level where Virginia records distinguish a guilty plea from a bench-trial conviction), 37 (88%) resolved by guilty plea and 5 (12%) went to trial — 1 acquittals and 4 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 Henrico County? 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. "Paula Hough — Virginia Defense Attorney Case Data, 2025." Available at https://www.virginiacourtfile.com/attorneys/paula-hough. Source: Virginia District Court Information System and Circuit Court Information System, 2025.
Data last refreshed May 2, 2026. Refreshed quarterly. For statewide outcome context, see the 2025 Virginia Criminal Court Outcomes report.