Clark J. Belote
Biography
Clark is a Member in the firm’s Norfolk office and a member of the Litigation, Government Contracts & Construction, Bankruptcy, Creditors’ Rights & Business Restructuring, and Franchising practice groups. His litigation practice focuses on commercial litigation, construction, creditors’ rights, and real estate. His experience includes representing contractors, creditors and corporate clients in cases involving complex commercial litigation, contract issues, business torts, and bankruptcy issues, as well as lenders and other stakeholders in real estate litigation matters. He earned his B.A. from the University of Virginia and his J.D., summa cum laude, from the University of Richmond School of Law.
Industries
Representative Matters
- Counsel for advertising agency in commercial litigation involving personal jurisdiction issues and breach of contract matters in Federal Court
- Counsel for hotel in connection with construction nuisance litigation
- Represented national franchisor in connection with collections and non-compete enforcement litigation
- Represented defendants in fraudulent conveyance bankruptcy litigation
- Represented municipality in defense of 42 U.S.C. § 1983 litigation
- Represented homeowners in construction arbitration dispute
- Served as local counsel in class action discovery dispute in United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia
- Drafted briefs for successful appeals in the Supreme Court of Virginia
- Represented lenders and property owners in real estate litigation matters
- Represented local company and municipality in insurance coverage disputes
- Represented entities in pursuing appeals of small business and minority or women-owned business status certifications
Representative Cases
- Burstein v. Nonte, No. 2:22-cv-267, 2023 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 148791, at *1 (E.D. Va. Aug. 23, 2023)
- Arco/Murray Nat’l Constr. Co. v. Owl Creek Energy, LLC, Civil Action No. 2:21-cv-00346, 2023 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 2157, at *2 (E.D. Va. Jan. 5, 2023)
- Tee Feral Golf, LLC v. MJM Golf, LLC, No. 21-1648, 2022 U.S. App. LEXIS 33928, at *1 (4th Cir. Dec. 9, 2022)
- United States ex rel. Concreate, Inc. v. S.B. Ballard Constr. Co., Civil Action No. 2:20cv293 (RCY), 2021 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 149650, at *1 (E.D. Va. Aug. 9, 2021)
- New Venture Holdings, L.L.C. v. DeVito Verdi, Inc., 376 F. Supp. 3d 683 (E.D. Va. 2019)
- Bauer Compressors, Inc. v. Three Rivers Crane, Inc., No. 2:18-CV-282, 2018 WL 4655731 (E.D. Va. Sept. 27, 2018)
- Soho Wilmington LLC v. Barnhill Contracting Co., No. 7:18-CV-79-D, 2019 WL 165708 (E.D.N.C. Jan. 10, 2019)
- Dr. Allan L. Bergano, D.D.S., P.C. v. City of Virginia Beach, 241 F. Supp. 3d 690 (E.D. Va. 2017)
- Matter of Mediation in Health Diagnostic, Lab., Inc., No. 3:17-MC-4, 2018 WL 524711 (E.D. Va. Jan. 23, 2018)
- CSX Transportation, Inc. v. Norfolk S. Ry. Co., No. 2:18CV530, 2019 WL 4564564 (E.D. Va. Sept. 9, 2019)
Recognition & Honors
- Top Lawyers; CoVaBIZ Magazine, 2023-2025
- Virginia’s Legal Elite; Virginia Business Magazine, 2021-2024
- Norfolk Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights/Insolvency and Reorganization Law; Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch, 2021, 2023-2025
- Norfolk Commercial Litigation; Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch, 2021-2025
- Law Clerk to the Honorable Douglas E. Miller; U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Virginia, 2014-2015
- Legal Extern to the Honorable Roger L. Gregory; U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, Fall 2013
- Manuscripts Editor, University of Richmond Law Review
Associations
- Alzheimer’s Association; Legal Industry Leadership Council Representative, 2024-present
- Federal Bar Association, Hampton Roads Chapter, Board Member
- I’Anson-Hoffman Inn of Court
- Virginia Bar Association
- Tidewater Bankruptcy Bar Association
- Norfolk-Portsmouth Bar Association
- Alzheimer’s Association, Newport News Walk Committee, Past Member
Court Admissions
- U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia
- U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Virginia
- U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia
- U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Virginia
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
Education
- University of Virginia; B.A., 2010
- University of Richmond School of Law; J.D., summa cum laude, 2014
Press & Publications
- Title Insurance Client Alert – Va. Ct. of Appeals Holds Grant of “Right of Way” Conveys Fee Simple, Not Easement
- 36 Kaufman & Canoles Attorneys Named as Top Lawyers 2025 in CoVaBIZ Magazine
- 51 Kaufman & Canoles Attorneys Named to Virginia Business Magazine’s “Legal Elite” 2024
- 55 Kaufman & Canoles Attorneys Named Best Lawyers in America 2025, 7 Named “Lawyer of the Year,” and 13 Named “Ones to Watch”
- 36 Kaufman & Canoles Attorneys Named as Top Lawyers 2024 in CoVaBIZ Magazine
- Title Insurance Client Alert – New Court of Appeals of Virginia Opinion Regarding Key Requirements To Prove, And Rebut, The Existence Of An Easement By Prescription
- 53 Kaufman & Canoles Attorneys Named Virginia Business Magazine’s “Legal Elite” 2023
- 54 Kaufman & Canoles Attorneys Named Best Lawyers in America© 2024, 6 Named “Lawyer of the Year,” and 10 Named “Ones to Watch”
- Virginia Real Estate Case Alert – Closing Funds Wired to Fraudster’s Account Covered by Insurance
- 44 Kaufman & Canoles Attorneys Named as Top Lawyers 2023 in CoVaBIZ Magazine
- 53 Kaufman & Canoles Attorneys Named Virginia Business Magazine’s “Legal Elite” 2022
- 48 Kaufman & Canoles Attorneys Named Best Lawyers In America© 2023, 5 Named “Lawyer of the Year” and 8 Named “Ones to Watch”
- Title Insurance Client Alert – Supreme Court of Virginia Holds Restrictive Covenant Unenforceable
- Title Insurance Client Alert – Fourth Circuit Rejects Borrower’s Breach of Fiduciary Duty Claim Against Deed of Trust Trustee. Tayal v. Bank of NY Mellon, Case No. 20-1790
- Clark J. Belote, Lauren S. Kadish, Randy C. Sparks Jr., and Benjamin A. Wills Elected Members at Kaufman & Canoles
- Title Insurance Client Alert – Easement Holder Is Necessary and Indispensable Party to Riparian Boundary Suit
- 52 Kaufman & Canoles Attorneys Named Virginia Business Magazine’s “Legal Elite” 2021
- Title Insurance Client Alert – Lis Pendens Only Entitled to Absolute Privilege in Defense of Defamation Torts, Holds Supreme Court of Virginia
- 48 Kaufman & Canoles Attorneys Named Best Lawyers in America© 2022, 4 Named “Lawyer of the Year” and 8 Named “Ones to Watch”
- Title Insurance Client Alert – CFPB’s Plans to Prevent Fall 2021 Foreclosure Tsunami with Mortgage Servicing Changes
- Bankruptcy & Creditors’ Rights Alert – February 2021
- 46 Attorneys Named “Best Lawyers in America 2021”, 5 Named “Lawyer of the Year” and 7 Named “Ones to Watch”
- Title Insurance Client Alert – Virginia Court Holds that the Two-Year Statute of Limitations for Fraud Applies to Claims of Forgery
- Title Insurance Client Alert – Supreme Court of Virginia Clarifies that Property Lines Are Presumed to Run to the Center of a Road When the Deed Describes the Property as Being “Bounded By” a Road
- Clark J. Belote, Esq. Joins Kaufman & Canoles