lawsuit

CARSON CITY – Catherine Cortez Masto points to a number of accomplishments in her first term as attorney general, from reducing methamphetamine production in Nevada to cracking down on mortgage fraud, all while having to live with major budget cuts and fewer staff.

A deal was struck that allows registered firearm owners to take their guns into Nevada's state parks, reports the Las Vegas Sun. The lawsuit was brought on in July by a Colorado-based Second Amendment foundation.

CARSON CITY – Half a dozen former employees of a Las Vegas-based gaming company laid off last year say they are still owed about $500,000 in severance pay and other compensation even as the firm continues to receive financial support from high profile investors, including the brother of President Obama’s chief of staff.
One of the former TableMAX Gaming employees, Tyson Wrensch, said efforts to contact current company officials to resolve the compensation issue have not produced any results so far.

CARSON CITY – Gov. Jim Gibbons and representatives of 19 other states today filed a response challenging the federal government’s motion to dismiss a lawsuit against the federal health care law.

CARSON CITY –  The American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada today asked the FBI’s Las Vegas field office to turn over records related to the agency’s collection and use of race and ethnicity data in local communities.

The Nevada Wildlife Commission is being challenged to defend its policies and actions in legal and administrative arenas over its awarding of grant money, transparency and increased focus on killing predators. Click here to read the story.

CARSON CITY – Lame duck Gov. Jim Gibbons not only fell short in campaign contributions in his recent primary loss to Brian Sandoval, but donations to his legal defense fund have dried up as well.

CARSON CITY – Gov. Jim Gibbons said today he believes Nevada and other states will prevail in their court challenge of the federal health care law following the filing of a motion to dismiss the lawsuit by the U.S. Department of Justice.

(Updated at 4:57 p.m. on June 16, 2010)
CARSON CITY – Former state Sen. Bob Beers, R-Las Vegas, said he has settled a lawsuit with the Nevada State Democratic Party over a campaign mailer sent out just days before the November 2008 general election alleging he was under review by the state Ethics Commission.

Carson City Sheriff Ken Furlong and the city are being sued for $10,000 by a former deputy sheriff who is alleging defamation, invasion of privacy, false light and emotional distress. Download the PDF of the lawsuit here.

The plaintiff, Paula Andrews, was the subject of an internal investigation involving falsifying documents and grand larceny in December 2008. According to the lawsuit, the investigation concluded the allegations were unfounded. Nevertheless, the plaintiff was later "constructively discharged."

Las Vegas attorney Mark Hutchison says he will soon be going to Florida for oral arguments in the federal motion to dismiss the health care lawsuit being brought by 20 states including Nevada.
Reagan-appointed U.S. District Court Judge Roger Vinson will hear arguments challenging the states’ right to bring the suit on September 14, 2010 in the Northern District of Florida.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) this morning voted to overturn the U.S. Atomic Energy Safety and Licensing Board’s order to suspend the Yucca Mountain administrative hearings.
The NRC has ordered the licensing board to make a decision on the Department of Energy’s (DOE) motion to withdraw the license for Yucca Mountain with prejudice by June 1.

CARSON CITY — American Party candidate Tim Fasano today said he has not yet decided whether or not he will appeal the decision by District Judge James T. Russell to allow Tea Party of Nevada Senate candidate Scott Ashjian to stay on the ballot this November.

This morning in a statewide media conference call moderated by the Nevada News Bureau, candidate Brian Sandoval fielded questions on numerous issues including the 2003 Supreme Court ruling on the two-thirds legislative supermajority needed to increase taxes, tax policy, the Tax Pledge, budget cuts and higher education salaries, renewable energy mandates and the state’s health care reform lawsuit.

CARSON CITY – A Las Vegas attorney running for attorney general as a Republican against Democrat incumbent Catherine Cortez Masto, and who called for a State Bar investigation into her release of a letter to the press about a potential legal challenge to the federal health care law, is now himself the subject of a bar inquiry.
Attorney Jacob Hafter called the inquiry ridiculous.
“It just shows the type of protection these incumbents have,” he said.

(This story was updated at 3:40 PM on 4/13/10)
Last Friday, Nevada Tea Party Senate candidate Scott Ashjian filed a response to the lawsuit brought against him by Independent American Party candidate Tim Fasano.

Four attorneys with ties to the issues and parties of Nevada’s health care reform lawsuit gave their perspectives to media and political bloggers during a Nevada News Bureau-hosted conference call this afternoon.
Mark Hutchison, lead counsel for Governor Gibbons’ newly retained pro-bono team, said he plans to participate in a conference with US District Court Judge Roger Vinson next week as part of the process to join Florida and other states in an amended complaint challenging the federal government on provisions in the recently passed health care legislation.

CARSON CITY – A member of the Gibbons administration said today he believes Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto violated attorney-client privilege when she commented on legal work she is doing on behalf of the governor.
The comment was made by Deputy Chief of Staff Lynn Hettrick during an interview on the Nevada NewsMakers television program. The discussion centered on Gibbons’ decision to move forward today with a challenge to the federal health care law without the participation of the attorney general’s office.

A dozen community and labor groups from Nevada have signed onto a letter to Attorney General Catherine Cortez-Masto urging her to support, not file suit, over federal health care reform.
Nevada Gov. Jim Gibbons this week demanded the Attorney General join a lawsuit filed by 14 other Attorneys General to block implementation of federal health care reform, a package of changes that critics of the lawsuits claim are needed in Nevada, where an estimated 400,000 men, women and children lack health insurance coverage.

Let me preface this by saying the just-passed health care reform law provokes strong opinions on both sides, and I'm not going to attempt in this post to pass judgement one way or the other.

But it seems very clear that embattled Gov. Jim Gibbons is trying to use this issue to boost his reelection chances, to the detriment of the state.

After President Obama announced his plan to eliminate funding for the Y

by Scott Schrantz

(Click image to play video)
A man upset at the failing of his lawsuit against Social Security took matters into his own hands Monday and opened fire in the lobby of the Federal Courthouse in Las Vegas

Abuse lawsuit names Mormons, Boy Scouts By MARCUS WOHLSEN Associated Press Writer

Roethlisberger's accuser in suit quits casino job By SCOTT SONNER Associated Pres

Controller hires stimulus officer involved in Gibbons lawsuit Appeal Capitol Bure

RENO (AP) - Five workers laid off last year from a northern Nevada mine have filed a civil lawsuit against a Canadian mining firm, claiming they were denied severance pay, notice, medical claims and retirement contributions required under...