Handling Accident

William Poremba was driving as part of his job for Southern Nevada Paving. While driving, he got into a car accident. See Poremba v. S. Nev. Paving, 133 Nev. Adv. Op. 2 (Jan. 26, 2017). William later filed a workers’ compensation claim through his employer. Since the accident wasn’t his fault, William also made a personal injury claim against the driver that hit him. William ultimately settled his personal injury claim. As is typical in most settlements, the settlement agreement didn’t specify how the funds were to be allocated. For example, there was no mention how much of the settlement would go towards for pain and suffering, medical bills or lost wages.   After he was done treating and his personal injury case settled, William tried to go back to work.  However, when William tried to go back to work, he realized that he needed additional medical care through the worker’s compensation program. However, William’s request to reopen his worker’s compensation claim was denied....

To provide a more in depth analysis of Nevada law, starting in 2017, the blog will move to a monthly format.  I hope you enjoy today’s blog and the new format as we move forward in discussing the exciting developments in the ever changing landscape of Nevada law.   Today’s blog addresses alternative theories of causation in a personal injury cases. An interesting case that came out of the Nevada Supreme Court on alternative theories of causation is Leavitt v. Siems , 130 Nev.Ad.Op. 54 (July 10, 2014). In Leavitt , Kami Leavitt underwent Lasik eye surgery with Dr. Siems. Unfortunately, after surgery, Kami ended up losing most of her vision in both eyes.  The case went to trial and the jury felt Dr. Siems did nothing wrong. At trial, Siem’s lawyers argued that Kami’s eyes did not heal properly after the surgery because of her own actions. They argued that Kami abused numbing eye drops after the surgery, making her eye problems worse. To support the “eye-drop-abuse” arg...

There are three major decisions from the Nevada Supreme Court on the liability of rental car companies after a car crash. The story starts in 1998, in the case of Alamo v. State Farm, where the high court said the rental company has to provide statutory minimums of $15,000 per person/$30,000.00 per accident, in accident coverage. See Alamo v. State Farm, 114 Nev. 154, 953 P.2d 1074 (1998); See also NRS 482.295. Once the court is satisfied that the car rental company has the required insurance, the judge can dismiss the rental company from the lawsuit. See NRS 482.305. Your Las Vegas Personal Injury Attorney will then continue the case against the at fault driver.  Less than two years after the Alamo case came out, the issue of car rental company liability was in front of the Nevada Supreme Court again in Salas v. Allstate Rent-A-Car . In Salas , the Court had to determine which insurance policy was first in line to pay for the injuries of an accident victim. The Court stated t...

When someone is injured in an accident and suffers ongoing injury, sometimes your Las Vegas Personal Injury Attorney and opposing side may both hire doctors to serve as expert witnesses. But, what happens when one side hires an expert, yet later decides they don’t want to call their expert at trial? The Nevada Supreme Court has said that it is ultimately up to the trial court to decide this issue. See McClendon v. Collins, 132 Nev. Adv. Op. No. 28 (2016). In McClendon , Diane Collins rear-ended a car driven by Ja Cynta McClendon. Collins’ defense lawyer designated an expert medical physician, Dr. Eugene Appel, who provided an expert witness report to back up his opinions. Collins’ defense lawyer later decided to withdraw Dr. Appel from their witness list. Surprisingly, McClendon’s lawyer wanted to use Dr. Appel as her own expert witness! The trial court wouldn’t allow this expert swap. The jury ultimately found that McClendon wasn’t injured by any fault of Collins. Unhappy with the res...

When you hire a Las Vegas Personal Injury Lawyer, your lawyer usually gets paid out of any settlement funds from your case. A recent case from the Nevada Supreme Court case came out with new guidelines for what your lawyer must do in certain cases to get paid. This happens when your medical bills are larger than your settlement amount and there is a dispute on how the settlement pie gets divided.  In the past, Las Vegas Personal Injury Lawyers used to get paid first, before any medical providers, who may have treated you with a lien. However, since the law is constantly changing, this is not always the case anymore. Now, the law says a lawyer has to serve a “Notice” of their lien on the at fault party and their lawyers. As a client, you will sign and personally receive a copy of your lawyer’s lien. Then your lawyer must provide a copy of the lien to the at fault party, their insurance company and their lawyer.  Some people may ask, if someone has a lawyer, why serve the fault...

The Nevada Supreme Court delivers new case law every month. Some of that new case law may affect your personal injury case. Today’s blog covers a recent Nevada Supreme Court case discussing whether photos documenting the damage to cars after an accident are admissible evidence in a personal injury trial. In Rish v. Simao, the Nevada high court determined that if a defendant fails to hire a biomechanical expert to talk about the severity of the accident, evidence of whether the accident was “low-impact” can still come into evidence. See 132 Nev.Ad.Op. 17 (2016), clarifying  Hallmark v. Eldridge, 124 Nev. 492, 500-502 (2008). The Nevada Supreme Court held that whether a car accident actually caused an injured parties’ injuries, are factual issues that are for a jury to decide.   Notably, the high court did NOT decide whether the trial court is required to include photographs and car repair invoices in trial. But, the Nevada Supreme Court stated that other jurisdict...

Health insurance may affect your personal injury case in ways that you may have not considered. Nowadays almost everyone has health insurance, since it is required by law. However, if your health insurance paid for some of your accident related medical treatment, it is entitled to get paid back for that advance payment. What does this mean? If you settle your personal injury claim, your health insurance gets paid off the top before anyone else gets paid, including you.   Not only is your personal injury attorney required to pay your health insurance for your accident related medical treatment, the health insurance company must be paid first, before anything else is paid. There are a few legal issues that come into play, which are set forth here: The “common fund” doctrine is an equitable doctrine that arises where a litigant or a lawyer who recovers a common fund for the benefit of persons other than himself or his client is entitled to reasonable attorney’s fee from the fund as ...

Today is the four year anniversary of driverless cars being allowed on Nevada roadways. During the 2011 legislative session, the Nevada State Legislature enacted Chapter 482A, entitled “Autonomous Vehicles”, allowing for driverless vehicles to hit the roads in Nevada. These laws went into effect on March 1, 2012. Nevada was the first state to allow driverless cars to apply for their own drivers' licenses. However, the DMV currently only allows test cars on the road. So, autonomous vehicles are not currently available to consumers. To make sure safety comes first, Nevada requires two trained drivers to be in every car, one of them in the front seat prepared to take control of the car should an emergency arise. To get the green light to drive on Nevada roadways, companies also have prove that one or more of their automated cars have been driven for at least 10,000 miles.  How can you tell if you are driving next to an automated car? Driverless cars have a red Nevada license plate, wi...

If you are injured at a casino, due to the intentional act of an employee, is the casino liable? The answer is yes, in Nevada, if a jury finds the act was “reasonably foreseeable”. In a recent case, Mandalay Bay was sued, when a woman was assaulted in her hotel room by a hotel employee. See Anderson v. Mandalay Corp., 131 Nev.Ad.Op. 82 (2015).  In that case, a female hotel guest was asleep in her Mandalay Bay hotel room.  While she was sleeping, an employee, with hotel room keycard access, entered her room and sexually assaulted her. What makes this case so egregious, is that the employee had a history of bad behavior and Mandalay Bay still gave him access to guestrooms.   The Nevada high court said that employers are vicariously liable for employees’ intentional harms if the injured person can show the intentional conduct was “reasonably foreseeable under the facts and circumstances of the case considering the nature and scope of [the employee’s] employment.” NRS 41...

After being in a car accident , you may be faced with the task of finding the right lawyer for you. To help you guide you through the process, here are the 5 Top Questions to ask an attorney in your personal injury case:     •    Will you be the actual person handling my case? At some larger firms, during your initial consultation, you will have a quick meet and greet with your lawyer, yet never see them again. During your first meeting, ask who will be your contact? And ask who will be the person handling your case? Many firms will route you to the paralegal, even if you would like to speak with your attorney on a certain issue. Make sure that you have access to your lawyer when you need them.     •     What is your contingency fee? Most personal injury lawyers will not require you to pay for any attorney’s fees out of your pocket. The typical fee ranges from 25-50% of the ultimate recovery. You are paying for an attorney’s skill a...

Southern Nevada is a wonderful place to live. Given our sunny days, it is home to many children and adults riding bicycles on our roadways. However, according to ThinkFirstNevada.org: • In the year 2000, 690 bicyclists were killed in crashes with motor vehicles. • In that same year, 51,000 bicyclists were injured in traffic-related crashes. • More than 373,000 people were treated in hospital emergency rooms for bicycle-related injuries in the year 2000. Bicyclists are vulnerable to severe injuries when they are involved in accidents . Today’s discussion is on the rights and responsibilities of both car drivers and bicyclists. The rules governing bicyclists on our roadways, are set forth in Nevada Revised Statutes (“NRS”) 484B, entitled “Rules of the Road”.  The relevant sections of NRS 484B are set forth here:    NRS 484B.270  Vehicles, bicycles and electric bicycles: Driver’s duty of due care; additional penalty if driver is proximate cause of collision with person ridin...

According to official Nevada records, 69 pedestrians died on our roadways last year. See, http://www.zerofatalitiesnv.com/pedestrian.php for more information on fatalities and injuries on our roads.  The rules governing pedestrians on our roadways, is codified in Nevada Revised Statutes (“NRS”) 484B, entitled “Rules of the Road”.  Two relevant sections of NRS 484B are set forth here:   NRS 484B.280 Duties of driver of motor vehicle to pedestrian; additional penalty if driver is proximate cause of collision with pedestrian.       1.  A driver of a motor vehicle shall:       (a)  Exercise due care to avoid a collision with a pedestrian;       (b) Give an audible warning with the horn of the vehicle if appropriate and when necessary to avoid such a collision; and       (c) Exercise proper caution upon observing a pedestrian:         ...

Today’s blog discusses what is ‘spoliation of evidence’ and how can it affect your Las Vegas personal injury case. Spoliation of evidence, is when a person or company losses evidence in a personal injury case. The most common example of spoliation of evidence, is when a company losses the videotape of a person’s fall.  Nevada law provides that when a potential for a personal injury claim exists, a party ‘is under a duty to preserve evidence which it knows or reasonably should know is relevant to the action.’ Banks v. Sunrise Hospital, 102 P.3d 52, 58 (Nev. 2004) (quoting Fire Ins. Exchange v. Zenith Radio Corp., 103 Nev. 648, 651, 747 P.2d 911, 914 (1987).  Even if a lawsuit has not yet been filed and if there is only “a potential for litigation [lawsuit],” the duty to preserve evidence arises.  Nevada law holds that should the at-fault party be unable to produce the videotape, then the injured party is entitled to a ‘loss of evidence’ jury instruction. The jury is in...

We have all experienced taking a trip or doing an activity, where you are required to sign a waiver before participating in the activity. Normally, we sign the waivers because we do not think anything bad will actually happen. But, what happens if you are injured in an activity after you sign a waiver? Whether the waiver will bar you from making a claim will depending on the unique facts of your case. It will be up to the judge in your case, to determine if you can present your personal injury case to a jury.  Historically, in Nevada there first must have been voluntary exposure to the danger. Sierra Pacific v. Anderson, 77 Nev. 68, at 71-73, 358 P.2d 892, at 894 (1961). Second, there must have been actual knowledge of the risk assumed. The Nevada High Court previously stated that “A risk can be said to have been voluntarily assumed by a person only if it was known to him and he fully appreciated the danger.” Id. , quoting Papagni v. Purdue, 74 Nev. 32, 35, 321 P.2d 252, 253 (195...

What happens if you need to sign an affidavit in the presence of a notary, but you do not have a notary available? Today’s blog will tell you the law on the issue. There is both State and Federal law on the issue of signing an affidavit (sometimes called a “declaration”) without a notary. Nevada law on this issue is set forth in NRS § 53.045 and provides in full:  NRS § 53.045. Use of unsworn declaration in lieu of affidavit or other sworn declaration; exception. Any matter whose existence or truth may be established by an affidavit or other sworn declaration may be established with the same effect by an unsworn declaration of its existence or truth signed by the declarant under penalty of perjury, and dated, in substantially the following form:   
       1.  If executed in this State: "I declare under penalty of perjury that the foregoing is true and correct."
 
       Executed on     _______...

In today’s blog we will be discussing what happens if you loan your car out to a friend and they cause a car accident . Whether you are liable for the resulting damages or injuries they cause is determined on a case by case basis. If you loaned your car out to a friend, who had a perfect driving record and gave you no other cause for concern, you will likely not be held liable for the damages they cause.   However, if you knew your friend had been in multiple car accidents or was intoxicated when you gave them your keys, you will likely be held financially responsible for their actions. This type of liability, is called “negligent entrustment”.  It essentially means that you were negligent in giving someone else permission to drive your car.   To make a successful claim of negligent entrustment, the injured party must allege four elements. Those elements are (1) the owner of the car owed a duty of care to the injured party; (2) the car owner breached that duty of care to ...

Las Vegas has one of the highest accident rates in the western states. If you are a parent and your teenager is preparing to get their driver’s license, you may have more to be concerned about besides their safety on our roads. If you buy your teenager a car and are the legal owner of that car, special responsibilities come with that arrangement. In Nevada, as a parent owning a car that their teenager is involved in a car accident , means the parent can be held liable for any property damage or personal injuries that their minor child causes. This is called the “Family Purpose Doctrine” and is set forth in NRS 41.440: LIABILITY OF OWNER OF MOTOR VEHICLE FOR NEGLIGENT OPERATION BY IMMEDIATE MEMBER OF FAMILY NRS §41.440. Imposition of liability. Any liability imposed upon a wife, husband, son, daughter, father, mother, brother, sister or other immediate member of a family arising out of his or her driving and operating a motor vehicle with the permission, express or implied, of such own...

Most people do not know that when a minor is involved in a car accident, special legal steps must be taken in the minor’s personal injury claim. First, Court approval must be sought, before any settlement can be confirmed. That means, once the parents have agreed to the settlement amount, the Court must also agree that the settlement amount is in the best interests of the minor child. It also doesn’t matter if the minor is a teenager and will turn 18 soon. As long as they have not reached 18 years of age, the Court must agree to the settlement terms. Additionally, the parents cannot hold onto the settlement money for the son or daughter. That means, parents cannot invest the monies in the stock market or any other type of higher yield investment.  Instead, the settlement funds for the child must be placed in an interest bearing blocked account with a local financial institution. Only when the child reaches 18 years of age can they can access that money. So, parents cannot take any...

There are two separate laws that govern registration tags in Las Vegas , Nevada. One is the City law, called municipal law. While the other, state law, located in Nevada Revised Statutes, usually shortened to simply “NRS”. Municipal is another word for City and includes the laws in the City of Las Vegas. According to Municipal Code §11.24.010, it is unlawful, on a street within the City, to "[p]ark a vehicle which does not display thereon a valid registration permit …  So, what happens when you renew your registration, but haven’t received that new color-coded sticker in the mail? Nevada state law may come to your rescue. NRS §482.280(4) states that a car owner who has applied for renewal may continue to drive the vehicle for the time it takes the DMV to issue a new registration card aka sticker. NRS §482.280(4) states: an owner who has made proper application for renewal of registration before the expiration of the current registration but who has not received the license plate o...

You are in a car accident and you call the police. They ask you if you are injured. At that moment, you are in a state of shock and are not feeling any pain. The police tell you to exchange insurance information with the other driver.   Many people want to know, what gives the police the right to no longer come to all car accidents scenes. The answer may surprise you. It was actually the Nevada State Legislature who said that no report is needed in these types of car accidents. Nevada Revised Statute, (NRS) §484E.070, establishes the right that no report need to issued in any minor, “non-injury” causing auto accident. The key provisions of NRS §484E.070:   NRS 484E.070 Written or electronic report of accident to Department by driver or owner; exceptions; confidentiality; use as evidence at trial. ….     2.   . . . the driver of a vehicle which is in any manner involved in an accident on a highway or on premises to which the public has access, if the a...