Legal Blog

The Retainer Agreement in A Personal Injury Case

The retainer agreement spells out the details of the relationship as attorney and client and covers most importantly, when it’s a personal injury lawsuit, the contingency fee arrangement. A contingency fee is the percentage the lawyer will be paid in the case for judgment or settlement. There is a section that addresses costs: how the […]

Judgment and Collection in Excess of The Policy

If you secure a judgment in excess of the policy and then you can begin collection against the defendant to get him or her to personally pay the amount on the judgment in excess of the insurance limits. In Nevada, we have a Homestead Act, so it is hard to collect against a defendant’s house. […]

How Do the Class Action Lawyers Get Paid?

There are a number of ways that class action attorneys’ fees have been paid. It can either be an amount that is negotiated, so the defendant pays attorneys’ fees, or if it’s a lump settlement, then the attorney’s fees can be paid out of that lump settlement. But in every scenario, the attorneys have to […]

Statute of Limitations – Medical Malpractice Exceptions

Q: Are there certain, long-term exceptions to the Statute of Limitations, in Medical Malpractice cases? Is it from the date of discovery? For example, if someone finds a sponge after a surgery inside them, but it takes a biopsy a long time later? There are a lot of statute of limitations that start running from […]

Dealing with Your Health Insurance Company in Writing

When you’re having a dispute with your insurance company, do your best to make sure that all communications are in writing. By minimizing the use of the telephone, you have a written set of documents showing what has transpired and the history of the claim. Otherwise you’re in a situation where you’re trying to recollect […]

The Role of The Special Master in A Class Action

In the case of a class action where liability is established by a court and the damages need to be calculated person by person, a Special Master would be appointed to figure out the individual damages for every person. But, there are different types of Special Masters. Sometimes there are Special Masters in State court […]

Hanson vs. State Farm and An Insurance Company’s Duty to Defend

Hanson vs. State Farm was a case in front of the Federal Court of Nevada, and Hanson, the insured, was suing the insurance company, arguing that it committed bad faith. The District Court granted a Summary Judgment for Hanson. The case arose after Hanson had sued someone who injured him for both negligent and intentional […]

Insurance Companies and Intentional Acts

When defending someone who caused an injury to another seemingly intentionally, the attorney hired by the insurance company is in a difficult situation. The attorney has duties to the insured and his or her client, and to the insurance company. The attorney must advocate for both even though their interests aren’t entirely aligned. There is […]

Intentional Acts that Cause Injuries

Whether an insurance company is going to cover injuries inflicted intentionally by its insured depends on what they are sued for. If you sue them for negligence and an intentional act, the insurance company has a duty to defend and indemnify their insured for all negligent acts unless of course there is an exclusion in […]

How Lost Wages Are Calculated After an Accident in Nevada

Is there a formula used to determine my settlement? It’s determined by loss of earnings and loss of earning capacity within the accident. So, say as a grocery store clerk you were earning $15 an hour, and you were working 40 hours a week, and so we can quantify that amount of damages (earnings). If, […]

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