Constitutional Law Expert Opines on Equal Treatment for Same-Sex Couples in Nevada

On December 16, 2012 in an article entitled "Right to 'vote with their feet' odious" published in the Las Vegas Review-Journal, UNLV Boyd Law Professor Thomas B. McAffee discussed the November 26, 2012 federal district court ruling in Sevcik v. Sandoval, slip copy, 2012 WL 5989662 (D. Nev. 2012) and an editorial published in the Review-Journal on December 4, 2012 about the ruling.

Sevcik v. Sandoval presented the question of whether "the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution prohibits the People of the State of Nevada from maintaining statutes that reserve the institution of civil marriage to one-man-one-woman relationships or from amending their state constitution to prohibit the State from recognizing marriages formed in other states as “marriages” under Nevada law if those marriages do not conform to Nevada's one-man-one-woman civil marriage institution." Sevcik, *1.

In an order granting summary judgment, District Judge Robert C. Jones ruled that "it does not." Sevcik, *1.

In "Right to 'vote with their feet' odious," Professor McAffee discusses the role of the federal Constitution and its primacy over the Nevada Constitution in matters of constitutional protection for fundamental rights. He also writes about the role of courts in enforcing equal protection of fundamental rights such as marriage. Professor McAffee is an expert on constitutional law, American legal history, and jurisprudence.

UNLV Law Blog: Boyd Bar Pass Results for July 2012

Posted today on the UNLV Law Blog:

Our overall pass rate, 76%, is the second highest July bar pass rate!  It exceeds the statewide overall pass rate of 69%.  We continue to exceed the statewide overall pass rates for both first timers and repeaters.

Overall Pass Rate:
The Nevada overall pass rate was 69% and includes both attorneys and students.  In comparison, in July 2011, the NV overall pass rate was 63%, while in February 2012, the Nevada overall pass rate was 63%.
The Boyd overall pass rate was 76% (94/124) and includes both first-timers and repeaters.  In comparison, in July 2011, Boyd's overall pass rate was 81% (87/108), while in February 2012, Boyd's overall pass rate was 67% (30/45).

First time Student Takers: 
The Nevada pass rate for first-time takers: 77%  In comparison, in July 2011, the Nevada pass rate for first-time student takers was 79%, while in February 2012 the Nevada pass rate for first-time student takers was 67%.
The Boyd pass rate for first-time takers was 79% (89/113).   In comparison, in July 2011, Boyd's pass rate for first-time takers was 87%, while in February 2012 Boyd's pass rate for first-time takers was 78%.

Repeat Takers: 
The Nevada pass rate for repeating student takers was 40%.  In comparison, in July 2011, the Nevada Pass rate for repeating student takers was 22% and in February 2012, the Nevada pass rate for repeating student takers was 34%.
The Boyd pass rate for repeating student takers was 45% (5/11).  In comparison, in July 2011, the Boyd pass rate for repeating student takers was 50% and in February 2012, Boyd's pass rate for repeating student takers was 50%.

Many thanks to Stacy Shiroma, Pramate Churchville, and DeShun Harris for helping me crunch these numbers.

Jennifer Carr, Director, Academic Success Program

(reposted with permission)

July 2011 Bar Results

The results of the July 2011 Nevada Bar Examination are in. Congratulations to all of the new members of the State Bar of Nevada who were sworn in at the October 19, 2011 ceremony in Reno and the October 21, 2011 ceremony in Las Vegas and to everyone who passed the bar exam!

Here are some of statistics:

Overall Pass Rate*

*This includes first-time student takers, repeat student takers, and attorneys licensed in other jurisdictions.

Overall: 66%

Boyd Alum: 81% - a new record for the law school!

First-time Student Takers

Overall: 79%

Boyd Alum: 87% - a new record for the law school!

Repeat Student Takers

Overall: 26%

Boyd Alum: 50% 

Thanks to Jennifer Carr (Boyd '06), Director of the Academic Success Program at the William S. Boyd School of Law at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas for making this information available.

New Incorporations Increasing in Nevada

According to the Quarterly Business Report from Nevada Secretary of State Ross Miller posted on April 14, 2011, new entity filings in Nevada for the first quarter of 2011 have increased by 11.6% over the first quarter of 2010. The most significant increases were in filings for new Limited Liability Companies (LLCs) with 1,382 more LLCs filing as new entities in Nevada in the first quarter of 2011 than in the first quarter of 2010.

Nevada Ranked 47th for Business in 2010

A CNBC Special Report ranked Nevada 47th for business competitiveness among the 50 states. In the ten categories in the study, Nevada only ranked above 20th in two categories, workforce (19th) and business friendliness (15th). Nevada was ranked at the bottom in two categories, economy (49th) and education (50th). In the other six categories, Nevada ranged from 31st to 40th. The other categories are cost of doing business, quality of life, transportation and infrastructure, technology and innovation, access to capital, and cost of living. CNBC's 2009 report and 2008 report are also available online.

Researching Nevada Business Cases

Researching Nevada business cases presents some challenges. There is not one publicly-available statewide database for business cases. Making business cases and records more easily available will contribute to the development of a body of business case law, which can contribute to predictabilty and consistency.



Second Judicial District Court (Northern Nevada)

It is possible to search online for cases in the Second Judicial District Court, which is located in Washoe County. One way to do this is to use Contexte CourtConnect. However, some specific information about the case such as the last name or company name is necessary to run this type of search. It is also possible to search for Judge Adams's cases by searching the calendar for cases in his department, Department 6. Unfortunately, this list does not indicate whether the cases are business cases or other types of civil cases.

For current cases on the calendar, the Second Judicial District Court has links to business cases for Judge Adams and business cases for Judge Flanagan. With a case number, it is possible to search for information about a specific case here.

Eighth Judicial District Court (Southern Nevada)
It is possible to search online for case summaries and information for the Eighth Judicial District Court, which is located in Clark County. However, business cases are grouped together with other civil cases so it is not possible to initiate a search for only business cases. Business Court judges dockets include non-business civil matters in addition to business matters. This means that it is not possible to search for business cases using the judges names alone.
There are a variety of ways to search for business cases in the Eighth Judicial District. One way to search for case summaries is to search the District Court Civil Calendar for Clark County by "Judicial Officer," the name of the judge, and "Case Category," in this case civil. Then the results list should be sorted by "Hearing Type," in this case business court. This sorts the list of results so that all Business Court cases are listed first. Then this list can be used to identify the case numbers for business cases for that particular judge.
To access case and case summaries, it is necessary to return to the District Civil Records search page and use the a case number (or parties or attorneys) to pull up a register of actions with links to the minutes, which give a brief procedural summary of the case. Records for civil cases are only available at present through requests at the Las Vegas Justice Court Clerk's Office.


Hat tip to:

• the research librarians at the Wiener-Rogers Law Library and Shana Brouwers (Boyd '11), a research assistant at the Law Library, for providing information on researching Nevada Business Courts, and
• Cindy Fladagar in the technology department of the Second Judicial District for clarifying the process for confirming the process for researching business cases in the Second Judicial District Court.

Nevada Business Courts

Nevada is one of fifteen states, including Delaware, that have specialized courts for business and complex litigation. The number of judges hearing business matters in Nevada is growing, which will allow the business courts to handle more cases. One of the benefits of business courts is that they can contribute to the development of a body of case law on business issues. Over time, the existence of a body of case law tends to contribute to increased predictability and consistency. However, to achieve these benefits, the body of case law must be accessible to business decision-makers and the lawyers who advise them. At present, as I will discuss in a future post, researching Nevada business cases is still an arduous and time consuming process compared to the ease of researching business cases in states with a longer history of business courts such as Delaware. Nevada has taken important steps in developing specialty business courts but there is still room for improvement when it comes to the ease of researching and access to case records and documents.



Southern Nevada
There are currently three business judges on the Eighth Judicial District Court, Judge Mark R. Denton (Dept. 13), Judge Elizabeth Gonzalez (Dept. 11), and Judge Kathleen Delaney (Dept. 25). Pursuant to Rule 1.61(c)(1) of the Eighth Judicial District's Rules of Practice, business court judges are designated by the Chief Judge. Business matters are randomly assigned to one of the business court judges. The business docket may include matters relating to Title 7 of the Nevada Revised Statutes (excluding Ch. 77) and matters where the amount in controversy exceeds $500,000 and relates to the Uniform Commercial Code, business torts, business franchises, or sale and purchase of businesses. (Rule 1.61(a))

The Eighth Judicial District Court is handling an increasing number of business cases. According to the Eighth Judicial District Annual Activity Reports:

Year....... Business Cases Filed .....% of All Civil Cases Filed
2008...................609.......................................2.2
2007...................404.......................................1.7
2006...................281........................................1.3
2005...................173........................................0.8
2004...................155........................................0.7
2003...................203........................................1.0
2002...................152........................................0.8
2001...................165........................................0.9

Northern Nevada
There are currently two business court judges on the Second Judicial District Court, Judge Brent Adams (Dept. 6) and Judge Patrick Flanagan (Dept. 7). Pursuant to Rule 2.1.5 of the Second Judicial District's Rules of Practice, business court judges are appointed for two-year terms by the Chief Judge and must have experience in business matters. If Judge Adams or Judge Flanagan is unable to preside over a matter for some reason, then the case may be assigned to one of the other business court judges on the Second Judicial District Court, Judge Steven P. Elliott (Dept. 10) or Judge Robert H. Perry (Dept. 9). Business matters are randomly assigned to one of the business court judges. The business docket may include corporate governance, trademark, and securities issues; shareholder suits, and disputes among business entities. (Rule 2.1.1)

I have not included statistics for Northern Nevada because the statistics section of the Second Judicial District Court's website, which includes the Annual Report of the Nevada Judiciary, is currently under construction.


Hat tip to:

• Michael Sommermeyer, the Court Information Officer for the Clark County Courts, for confirming the appointment of the newest business court judge in the Eighth Judicial District, Judge Kathleen Delaney, and
• Cindy Fladagar in the technology department of the Second Judicial District for clarifying the process for assigning cases to the business court judges.

July 2009 Nevada Bar Exam Update

Congratulations to everyone who passed the Nevada Bar Exam!

The bar results for the July 2009 Nevada Bar Exam were released yesterday by the State Bar of Nevada. Hat tip to the comment by lawzvegas (Boyd '06) asking for some statistics on the results. Here are some of the numbers:



All Takers*
*This includes first-time student takers, repeat student takers, and attorneys licensed in other jurisdictions.
Overall: 63%
Boyd Alum: 74%

First-time Student Takers
Overall: 74%
Boyd Alum: 86% - a new record for the law school!

Repeat Student Takers
Overall: 28%
Boyd Alum: 33% (53% for participants in the Academic Success Program)


Thanks to Jennifer Carr (Boyd '06), Director of the Academic Success Program at the William S. Boyd School of Law at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas for making this information available.


Read more about the success of Boyd alum on the July 2009 Nevada Bar Exam here:
- UNLV Office of Public Affairs, UNLV Boyd Law School Graduates Achieve Highest Pass Rate on Nevada Bar Exam in School History, Oct. 28, 2009
- The Rebel Yell, Boyd Law Scores High, Oct. 29, 2009
- Nicole Lucht, Boyd grads doing better than ever on bar exam, Las Vegas Sun, Nov. 13, 2009
- Joseph W. Law, Boyd Raises the Bar, at Wild Wild Law Blog, Oct. 26, 2009

Securities Class Actions on the Rise

Before the recent subprime mortgage and financial crises, the number of securities class action filings was declining. However, increasing filings against foreign firms and financial services firms signal a changing, or perhaps changed, trend. The gaming sector has not been exempt from the recent spate of filings. Howard Stutz at the Las Vegas Review-Journal published an interesting article this past Saturday discussing recent filings in the gaming sector and quoting yours truly. Detailed information about securities class action filings, prosecution, defense, and settlement is available at the Securities Class Action Clearinghouse.

No New Corporations Sole in Nevada

In Senate Bill No. 55, the 2009 Nevada Legislature amended the Nevada Revised Statutes (NRS) governing the incorporation of corporations sole. A corporation sole may be formed in Nevada "for acquiring, holding or disposing of church or religious society property, for the benefit of religion, for works of charity, and for public worship," pursuant to NRS Chapter 84. As of July 1, 2009, new corporations sole may only be formed in Nevada if they are a subsidiary of an existing corporation sole. After July 1, 2011, no new corporations sole may be formed in Nevada. Senate Bill No. 55 does not change the status of existing corporations sole.

Nevada Business Law Wiki

I have started a Nevada Business Law wiki. Please contribute content to help build this site and create a collaborative community resource for business law in Nevada. Join this page or add content anonymously. If you are not sure what a wiki is, there is a great explanation of Wikis in Plain English on YouTube.

July 2009 Nevada Bar Exam

The July 2009 Nevada Bar Exam begins today. The overall pass rate is generally between 62-65%. Take heart Boyd grads. The passage rate for Boyd alum taking the bar exam at this time last year was 83%. Good luck to all!

Business Licensing Transfer of Power

The 2009 Nevada Legislature has taken further steps to consolidate responsibilities for business licensing in the office of the Nevada Secretary of State. Pursuant to Nevada Assembly Bill No. 146, the authority to issue state business licenses will be transferred from the Nevada Department of Taxation to the Nevada Secretary of State's office. The transfer will be effective on October 1, 2009. This transfer of responsibilities moves Nevada one step closer to the Delaware one-stop-shopping model for businesses.

Nevada Business Law

Despite Nevada's growing popularity as a location for the incorporation of new businesses, Nevada business law resources are few and far between. There are some basic public resources: the Nevada Revised Statutes are available online and Nevada Secretary of State Ross Miller has developed a website to answer the question "Why Nevada?" The Nevada Law Journal, which is run by students of the William S. Boyd School of Law at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, publishes Nevada Supreme Court Summaries, Nevada Supreme Court Commentaries, Nevada Legislative Summaries, and Nevada Legislative Commentaries. A local law firm, Lionel Sawyer & Collins, also publishes a guide entitled "Doing Business In Nevada: A Practical Guide." However, although Nevada has dedicated business courts and judges, case law is limited because lower courts in Nevada do not publish opinions and, in fact, often do not issue opinions. On this blog, I will post information about Nevada business law and, hopefully, create a space where practitioners and others will contribute their knowledge of business law in Nevada and engage in a useful discourse.