KSSJ News

Gary Schnitzer was recently named one of the 10 Most Prominent Real Estate Attorneys in Las Vegas by the Las Vegas Business Press.

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Nevada Business Magazine has recently named Martin Kravitz and Timothy Geswein to be included in the top 150 “Legal Elite” among the more than 12,000 lawyers in the State of Nevada. Tyler Watson has also been named as a "50 Best Up & Coming Attorney" in the same publication.

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KSSJ is pleased to announce that our managing partner, Martin J. Kravitz, has been selected as a Fellow of the American Bar Association. This honor is afforded to only one third of one percent of all lawyers in the United States, and is in recognition of one whose professional, public and private career has demonstrated outstanding dedication to the welfare of the community, the traditions of the profession and the maintenance and advancement of the highest objectives of the American Bar Association.

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KSSJ recently won four significant cases before the Nevada Supreme Court, and the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals which have far reaching implications for the resort industry and commercial clients:

Smith vs. Mahoney’s Silver Nugget, 265 P.3d 688 (Nev. 2012). The Nevada Supreme Court issued a landmark decision clarifying the proof necessary to hold a casino hotel liable if a crime occurs on the premises. In affirming summary judgment against the estate of the decedent who was shot to death by a perpetrator carrying a concealed weapon, the Court concluded that a lower court may find that no duty exists to protect a patron where: 1) there were no prior “similar” happenings on the premises; and 2) the hotel had taken “basic minimum precautions” to protect the safety of its guests. The Court made it clear that the proof of any prior crimes had to be of a similar nature in a similar location in order to satisfy the standard. The decision therefore overcomes the customary arguments that the hotel had other criminal activity (ie. knifings vs. shootings or petty crimes in other locations) to satisfy the “similarity” test. Finally, the Court noted that there was no evidence to suggest that the Casino’s security should have known that the perpetrator was carrying a concealed weapon.

Rodriguez vs. Primadonna, 216 P.3d 793 (Nev. 2009). The Nevada Supreme Court affirmed the dismissal of suit by a quadriplegic plaintiff who claimed that he had been wrongfully evicted from a hotel after causing a disturbance with other customers. After the eviction, Plaintiff was injured in a rollover accident caused by an intoxicated driver who had also been evicted. The Court found security had an absolute right to evict Plaintiff and his drunken, misbehaving friends from the premise; and that the hotel had no obligation to restrain or prevent a clearly intoxicated driver from putting plaintiff in peril.

Fayer vs. Vaughn, et. al., 649 F. 3d 1061 (9th Cir. 2011). The Federal Court of Appeals affirmed the dismissal of a false arrest, battery, and defamation suit brought by a gambler against a hotel after he used a false i.d. in a hotel sports book. The court found that the use a false i.d. was a class E felony which justified the arrest and detention based upon probable cause.

Finkel vs. Cashman Photo, 270 P. 3d 1259 (Nev. 2012). The Nevada Supreme Court created landmark new law involving the misuse of trade secrets by a former employee. In the decision, the Court affirmed the grant of a preliminary injunction preventing a former employee from violating his written covenants not to compete, disparage, and solicit. The Court also found that the Uniform Trade Secrets Act may be used to prohibit misuse of confidential information even after the original contract prohibitions have expired.