Nevada

Business Brief Hits $30M ‘Civil Death Penalty’ for Goodyear Pretrial Foot-Dragging

Several business groups are asking the Nevada Supreme Court to reconsider a $30 million verdict against Goodyear issued after a judge struck its defenses in a rollover case because of pretrial foot-dragging. In the July1 ruling, the Nevada high court in a 6-1 vote upheld the discovery sanction, issued by…

Aug 16, 2010 11:00 AM CDT

Lawyer Who Took Obstruction Plea in Med Mal Kickbacks Case Is Suspended

A Las Vegas lawyer who pleaded guilty to obstruction earlier this year concerning an alleged medical malpractice case kickbacks scheme has been temporarily suspended by the Nevada Supreme Court. Further attorney discipline proceedings will determine an appropriate sanction for Noel Gage, 72, who had been accused of participating in an…

Aug 5, 2010 9:01 PM CDT

Magistrate Evokes Maytag Repairman, Schoolmarm in Opinion Blasting Lawyers

A federal magistrate says she’s not the Maytag repairman or an elementary school teacher, but suggests that two lawyers in a civil rights lawsuit are apparently oblivious to that fact. In a scathing opinion (PDF), Magistrate Judge Peggy Leen admonishes Las Vegas plaintiffs lawyer Robert Kossack and his opposing counsel,…

Aug 3, 2010 1:43 PM CDT

Despite Suit by Black Lawyer Arrested While Jogging, Cops Disclaim Racial Issues

Even after police apparently recognized him as a downtown defense lawyer, they went ahead and arrested him for no good reason while he was jogging in his longtime neighborhood in West Las Vegas, contends David Lee Phillips. A lawsuit filed over the incident by Phillips, 58, who is black and…

Jul 30, 2010 8:27 PM CDT

Ethics Panel Nixes Charity Plan to Auction Lunch Dates with Judges

No matter how worthy the cause, it’s not ethical for a judge to allow him- or herself to be auctioned off as a lunch date at a charitable event, an ethics panel of the Nevada Commission on Judicial Discipline has ruled in an advisory opinion. Doing so would be fraught…

Jul 7, 2010 6:27 PM CDT

Nevada DA Refuses to Charge Himself After Arrest by Sheriff

The Nevada Supreme Court has ordered a judge far from the town of Pahrump to appoint a special prosecutor to sort out accusations being lobbed in a fight between the sheriff and district attorney there. The DA, Robert Beckett, was arrested by a Nye County sheriff’s deputy in May, but…

Jul 6, 2010 1:00 PM CDT

Lawyer Who Acquired Too Many Clients Has Breakdown, Fights to Keep Law License

A Las Vegas lawyer who was overwhelmed with the number of new clients flocking to his bankruptcy practice is fighting to keep his law license after suffering an “emotional crisis” and packing up for Miami. Jorge Sanchez had been out of law school for only a couple of years in…

Jul 1, 2010 2:15 PM CDT

Law Firm Points Trash-Out Crew to Paid-Up ‘Foreclosure,’ Is Sued

Martin Powelson paid off his delinquent Detroit mortgage. But after a law firm that handles a high-volume foreclosure practice mistakenly said told the lender that the redemption period had expired with the loan unpaid, a so-called trash-out crew paid a visit to his house. Contending that crew removed some $60,000…

Jun 7, 2010 6:51 PM CDT

Vegas PI Lawyers Say Insurers Are Delaying Settlements and Offering Less

A plaintiffs personal injury practice isn’t what it used to be, at least in Las Vegas. Plaintiffs lawyers in the city tell the Las Vegas Business Press that insurers are dragging their feet on settlements and offering less money. Personal injury lawyer Ed Bernstein says a typical claim used to…

May 21, 2010 10:30 AM CDT

Vegas Lawyer Reprimanded for Ad that ‘Grossly Misstated the Law’

Las Vegas lawyer Anthony “Tony the Tiger” Lopez Jr. has received a reprimand for running a radio ad that “grossly misstated the law.” The Nevada Supreme Court reprimanded Lopez for a 10-second Spanish-language radio ad that said, “If you have had an auto accident, by law you have the right…

Apr 12, 2010 3:01 PM CDT

Fed’l Judge Nixes $200K in Recommended Sanctions for 2 Lawyers & Firm

A federal judge in Nevada has nixed the $200,000 or so in sanctions that a magistrate judge had sought to impose on a California law firm and two of its ex-attorneys. Affirming the objections of Liner Grode Stein Yankelevitz Sunshine Regenstreif & Taylor and Los Angeles lawyers Deborah Klar and…

Apr 9, 2010 5:16 PM CDT

Does Mini-Defense in Capital Case After Perjury Threat Merit New Trial?

Concerned that their client intended to perjure himself in a Nevada capital murder case, defense lawyers for Siaosi Vanisi sought to withdraw. Then, when the judge refused permission to do so, they put on an abbreviated version of a standard murder defense: They eliminated opening and closing arguments and the…

Mar 2, 2010 9:15 PM CST

PI Lawyer Takes ‘Honest Services’ Plea; Case Once Thought ‘Massive’ Fizzles

A Nevada personal injury lawyer accused of settling cases to his clients’ detriment has taken a plea, on the eve of a second trial in a federal “honest services” medical insurance fraud case once thought potentially to involve hundreds of professionals. Attorney Noel Gage has agreed to plead guilty on…

Feb 23, 2010 10:02 PM CST

Vegas Lawyer’s TV Ads Advise Accident Victims to Text Him

A Las Vegas trial lawyer known for his TV slogan, “Enough said, call Ed,” has rolled out TV ads with a text number that can be used to contact his firm after an accident. Lawyer Ed Bernstein has spent $50,000 in the past year in his texting initiative, the Las…

Feb 16, 2010 4:25 PM CST

Sen. Reid Critical of ABA Judicial Nominee Evals

During a Senate Judiciary Committee meeting today, Sen. Harry Reid offered up criticism of the ABA’s process of evaluating nominees for the federal bench, saying whether the individual is qualified shouldn’t depend on prior judicial experience. Reid’s comments came as he was introducing a nominee from Nevada, Gloria Navarro, the…

Feb 11, 2010 7:14 PM CST