Justia Nevada Supreme Court Opinion Summaries

Appellants filed this personal injury action against Jane Liles and her daughter, Susan Liles, for damages arising from a car accident in Nevada. Both Jane and Susan were California residents. At issue in this case was whether Jane, a nonresident defendant, was subject to personal jurisdiction in Nevada. The district court granted Jane’s motion to dismiss the complaint due to lack of personal jurisdiction. The Supreme Court reversed, holding (1) Jane was not subject to personal jurisdiction in Nevada by virtue of (i) Susan’s unilateral use in Nevada of the vehicle involved in the car accident, (ii) the accident arising from Susan’s use of the vehicle, or (iii) Jane's motion to consolidate in a Nevada court the several cases stemming from the accident; but (2) Jane might be subject to jurisdiction in Nevada based on an interpleader action filed in Nevada by Jane’s insurance company. Remanded.View "Dogra v. Liles" on Justia Law

Petitioners were sued by Investors who alleged that Petitioners had breached various statutory, contractual, and fiduciary duties. Petitioners filed numerous counterclaims alleging (1) Dana Gentry, a local television reporter, helped Investors investigate and prepare their lawsuit in order to manufacture news stories intended to embarrass Petitioners; and (2) Gentry received personal favors from Investors in connection with the news stories. During discovery, Petitioners served a subpoena on Gentry requesting information relating to Gentry's relationship with Investors. Gentry filed a motion to quash the subpoena, arguing that the information sought was protected by Nevada's news shield statute, which protects journalists from being required to reveal information gathered in their professional capacities in the course of developing news stories. The district court granted the motion to quash. The Supreme Court denied Petitioners' petition for extraordinary relief, concluding that Gentry's motion to quash the subpoena properly asserted the news shield privilege and that Petitioners failed to overcome this privilege.View "Aspen Fin. Servs., Inc. v. Eighth Judicial Dist. Court" on Justia Law

Raymond Yeghiazarian died from injuries after colliding with Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD) Officer Jared Wicks. Raymond's wife and her son and two daughters (collectively, the Yeghiazarian family) filed a complaint against LVMPD and Officer Wicks, alleging negligence resulting in Raymond's death. After a trial, the jury found Officer Wicks was seventy-five percent negligent and Raymond was twenty-five percent negligent. The district court subsequently issued a judgment against LVMPD for $250,000 and awarded the Yeghiazarian family attorney fees and costs. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that the district court (1) did not abuse its discretion by excluding evidence of Raymond's alcohol consumption prior to the accident; (2) did not abuse its discretion in permitting the Yeghiazarian family's expert to testify; (3) correctly calculated damages; and (4) did not abuse its discretion in awarding attorney fees. View "Las Vegas Metro. Police Dep't v. Yeghiazarian" on Justia Law