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Dec. 18, 2007
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

County is called court 'hellhole'

By DAVID KIHARA
REVIEW-JOURNAL

A Washington-based nonprofit is calling Clark County one of the most unfair civil court jurisdictions in the nation and says the courthouse in Las Vegas is attracting personal injury lawyers merely looking to get rich.

The American Tort Reform Association for the first time is placing Clark County on its list of "Judicial Hellholes." It ranked the area fifth out of six. The first was South Florida and the last was Atlantic County, N.J.

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    • "The shenanigans at the Clark County courts have finally reached a critical mass from our perspective," said Darren McKinney, spokesman for the group, which is dedicated to tort and liability reform. Its members include small and large companies and trade and business associations, among others.

    Co-founded in 1986 by the American Medical Association and the American Council of Engineering Companies, it generally supports limiting the liabilities companies and some professionals may face.

    For the 2007 Judicial Hellholes report, the group cited the 2006 Los Angeles Times series "They're Playing With a Stacked Judicial Deck," which reported that some Clark County judges had ruled in favor of attorneys who contributed to their campaigns.

    The report notes that one unnamed judge held a fundraiser for an event four days before a hearing. The judge's largest total contributions came from a personal injury lawyer and his firm who wound up with a case before the judge. The corporate defense attorney in the case hadn't contributed to the judge, the report stated.

    The judge ordered the defendant to pay $1.5 million to the plaintiffs at the hearing, the report stated.

    In a prepared statement, Chief District Judge Kathy Hardcastle called the report a "knee-jerk reaction to a series in the Los Angeles Times that contained many inaccuracies and generalities about former judges in Clark County."

    Contact reporter David Kihara at dkihara@reviewjournal.com or (702) 380-1039.



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    oh my god wrote on December 20, 2007 09:11 AM: this is a light slap on the wrist compared to what's really going on


    moblyw wrote on December 19, 2007 05:21 PM: The Feds need to do an investigation in Washoe County also.


    Moblyw wrote on December 19, 2007 05:17 PM: I am totally surprised that the hellhole they are talking about wasn't in Washoe County.


    nevada wrote on December 19, 2007 11:41 AM: John Meyers: these issues are beyond your petty judgment and understanding. This is about favortism due to corruption and conflicts of interests. You sound chronically naive.


    cant say wrote on December 19, 2007 10:26 AM: Any one of these elected officials have the opportunity to do the right thing at anytime.
    The feds can't help but view all this under title 18 as a can of worms. Conspiracies before and after the fact, campaign issues, constitutional violations, cover ups, conflicts of interests.
    As we speak the feds are pulling the pieces together as a public corruption matter with RICO as a driving force as this 'clan' is as we all know is well organized.
    Some of these jerks are in too deep to go to the feds THEY THINK!!!
    But it may be the only way they can save their own skins.
    Meanwhile any or all of us that can help 'connect the dots' for the feds will help accelerate the process.


    fedup wrote on December 18, 2007 11:12 PM: Kathy Hardcastle had to prepare that statement??? Have some more "drinks" Kathy.


    perverted justice wrote on December 18, 2007 11:08 PM: The feds need to start at the top and clean the place out. It is one big network of corruption.

    Someone needs to take a good look at the person charged with "randomly" assigning the cases.


    Mamamia wrote on December 18, 2007 08:33 PM: I beg to differ! The Criminal and Family courts are cesspools of hell in comparison to Civil court. Attend one of the "trials" or "hearings" at either one and you will see the methods these "jurists" rule with an iron hand and iron heart, stamping the cases out like so many hamburgers on a conveyor belt. The defendants are put on hold time and again for little or no reason instead of expediting them at once to eleminate the backlog of cases clogging up both courts. And lets not even mention the hope of getting justice in these "courts" !


    craig seifert wrote on December 18, 2007 03:53 PM: The Clark County system in a word: sucks. They need to roll the whole court system into one. Abolish justice court and make it all district court, and then rotate the judges. For a 180 day block there in Family Court, then juvenile court, then they get a civil block, and then a criminal block. Hell they are all lawyers there should be no difference between justice court judge and a district court judge. This way it would save money, avoid all the little fiefdom we have at family court, the favoritism and cronyism we currently have. With the money that is saved by combining them all into district Court judges…use the money saved and create a Nevada Court of Appeals. That way the Nevada Supreme Court could rule on cases of importance instead of administrative/procedural things. In any event, you get the big picture of what I am saying.


    Triple Eight wrote on December 18, 2007 03:50 PM: NOTES:
    1. but really, what is "is"?
    2. whose -- knot who's... geeze,
    smarten up there, people.
    3. folks are STILL wondering how and
    why the roman empire went out of
    business? helloooooo....??????


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