Sean Claggett is representing a family that is suing their HOA and property management company over the death of their daughter. [Fox5Vegas]
Scandal at the Southern Nevada Regional Housing Authority? [Las Vegas Sun]
Details about a school funding formula, sure to give some attorneys more work, are starting to be revealed. [TNI]
We’ve discussed this before, but one of the readers wants your suggestions for a budget friendly weekend getaway–preferably somewhere quieter than Las Vegas. Suggestions already include Brianhead and Big Bear. Any other suggestions?
I like Sean, but that suit is a loser. Nevada law is clear that a property owner does not owe a duty to protect someone not injured on the owner's property.
A few questionable things in there. I think they're implying the HOA should evict a tenant? Which is not within an HOA's powers at all. But get enough carriers as defendants and maybe one will bite? Or get a judge that is a toss up and hope you get to a trial and play to the emotions of the jury? Got lucky there with Tim Williams.
My initial thought would be that the owners/landlords would have liability if you could show notice, but I'm not sure what the HOA or management company would be in a position to do other than issue fines perhaps. What I am sure of is that the 12(b)(5) briefing will be interesting to read.
Without reading the Complaint, I guess I can't fully evaluate the merits of Claggett's claim, but based on the article, this lawsuit against the HOA does not seem to fly. What duty is imposed on the HOA, and by what document/statute?
Your initial thought is incorrect. Sean is suing the owner of the house that was allegedly supposed to be the target of the shooting. Sean is not suing the owner of the little girl's house. The owner of the intended house has no duty to protect someone in another house from a shooting, even if the owner knew that its tenants were wild, gang members, etc. as alleged in the complaint.
I also agree that the claims against the HOA fail. The fact that the HOA could have allegedly evicted the tenants of the Section 8 house (i.e. the intended house) pursuant to the CCRs is not a duty that requires the HOA to act. Plus, the HOA will move to dismiss or stay the case and require Sean's client to mediation pursuant to NRS 38.310, since the claim necessarily involves the interpretation of the CCRs.
So if I rent a house to a guy running a meth lab, and I am aware of it but do nothing, and the meth lab blows up and injures a neighbor, or destroys their home, then I have no duty to the injured neighbor? I'm not going to take the time to research it, but I have a hard time believing that would be the law. I agree re the HOA and property management claims.
It is next to impossible to get summary judgment on a negligence claim. As long as it goes before a jury, defendants have exposure and will possibly settle rather than face a jury on these horrendous facts. The house was a public nuisance and no one did anything about it. Tough case, yes. But something will come out of it. Meanwhile Claggett gets lot of PR pursuing a case no one else would touch.
No case here. Lawyers are saying that. Love the sentimental touch about how Claggett brings his own daughter into it, wth does that have to do with a poor little girl getting murdered? All about him.
Stupid stupid case. Like Rule 11 Sanctions bad of a case. I do not want to punish the family; however if no one takes a swing at Claggett on this one and says "Whoa you went a bridge too far…." something is horribly horribly wrong. Claggett had that Thompson verdict go to his head.
11:36 – your stated facts are different than what happened here. In your scenario, you might be liable, because the explosion (that you presumably had a duty to prevent) took place on YOUR property.
In Sean's case, the shooter (as far as I understand it) was on a public street, not on the defendant's property. Thus, they had no ability or duty to control him. Even though Sean alleges that everyone knew the defendant's house was a gang house, that still does not require the owner of the property to police the world and prevent a third party from shooting a neighbor's house, especially from a public street. There's lots of case law on this issue in Nevada.
Sounds like the community had become a fertile environment for criminal activity, the HOA and HOA mgmt knew it, and they did nothing to increase security.
If the tenant was a Section 8 tenant, good luck getting them out unless they do something that gets them kicked off the Section 8 program. Otherwise the HOA and/or property manager and/or property owner would expose themselves to a racial discrimination claim and possible violation of Section 8 participating property requirements. Section 8 is great money, very consistent, and damn near guaranteed – as long as you can put up with the problems that come with it in the neighborhoods where it is prevalent.
Sean Claggett is an attention seeker. During a two minute clip, he was discussing his daughter, and about how he cried about this case. Nobody gives a shit about you or your kid.
Sean Claggett/HOA Case. Almost impossible to get summary judgment in a negligence case. As long as the case can get before a jury, then there is exposure for the defendants. As long as there is exposure, there is potential settlement value. Seems like the house was a public nuisance. Case may have to end up before Nv. S. Ct. for these issues to be ferreted out. So many issues. Criminal acts of third parties cuts off liability. By the way whatever happened to the "swing case" and that huge verdict. Anybody know.
Swingset case is up on appeal. Claggett lost the sanctions against Boyack firm which went up first on a Writ. I believe they completed Supreme Court Settlement Conference on the underlying case and are proceeding to briefing.
As to this case, let me get this straight so the HOA should have not only foreseen that a house on the block was a nuisance but should have had an Army (because it would have needed security sufficient to stop a car full of gangbangers armed to the teeth because a single private security guy with a pop-pop was not stopping anything) and THEN the HOA should have foreseen that gang bangers would not only show up in an army but would fire into the wrong house. C'mon man. Enough with the good press. I am with the poster above. This is frivolous and sanctionable.
If the landlords knew they were renting to gangbangers then it was foreseeable that something like this would happen. Their liability policy is probably $1 million, so if the case survives SJ, then it will probably be offered because the exposure is so high and because the landlords, if they have an ounce of common sense, will hire personal counsel who will demand it.
If you mean the great outdoor opportunities around St. George, then yes. If you mean St. George proper, then no. St. George somehow manages to combine the feigned piety of Provo with the materialism of Orange County. I can't imagine the hell it must be living there.
Cedar Mountain / Brian Head. Southern Utah is nice for outdoors stuff as long as you stay out of Zion National Park, which has been tragically ruined by NPS mismanagement and a tidal wave of Californians.
Guest
Anonymous
May 10, 2019 6:02 pm
La Jolla, California or Carlsbad.
Guest
Anonymous
May 10, 2019 6:38 pm
Spent a weekend in Kingman once with the wife and had fun. Not much to do but that's kind of the point. There's a couple downtown bars that have live music at night. Just a relaxing place to get away for the night.
"[t]hree lawyers . . . argue in a federal suit that the bar should not use mandatory dues to fund activities such as diversity initiatives, access to justice programs that help prevent deportations, and legislative drafting and advocacy." Our bar will be split soon. Why hasn't anyone filed yet?
Guest
Anonymous
May 10, 2019 8:12 pm
The escape car is warming up right now. Money cannot hide stupid. I cannot believe the shit I am reading right now as I work on a responding brief by a "respected" judge's ruling.
Guest
Jordan Ross, Principal, Ross Legal Search
May 10, 2019 8:32 pm
Obviously Laughlin! No where else can a person eat so much buffet food for so little – as anyone who has ever seen me (especially in profile) can attest to.
It's weird how I always forget Laughlin exists. And then someone reminds me of it, and I say "oh yeah, that sounds good." Then a day later, I forget about it again. Does anyone else do that?
I believe we also have special needs trusts that are similarly designed to help people save money, but without ruining their eligibility.
Basically, it seems like on both the federal and state level, we have created mechanisms that *lawfully* allow someone to "get around" the eligibility requirements to some degree.
I don't practice in this area, so I am probably missing something. But wtf? Why don't we just fix the eligibility standards? Instead of creating special programs that people have to know about and maybe even hire a lawyer to help with. And pay fees to a brokerage…. oh wait.
Guest
Anonymous
May 10, 2019 9:57 pm
Different things for different circumstances. The goal here is to ensure that SSI and Medicaid are reserved for those in the most meager of circumstances, and not rich folks who also happen to be disabled, particularly when "disability" comes so often later in life. Even with SNTs, you are very limited in what kind of distributions you can make with the beneficiary's own assets. Make the wrong kind of distributions and you kick them off the government benefits.
Guest
Anonymous
May 10, 2019 11:26 pm
Went to the CCBA judge' s mixer, too. Should've asked half the Supreme Court about reciprocity. Did not recognize Betsey Gonzalez.
Guest
Anonymous
May 11, 2019 12:16 am
Nice to see UNLV law is turning into Harry Reid's personal playground. The law school is going down the drain fast.
Dean Dan wants reciprocity to take jobs and cases away from UNLV law grads. Come sit on Dean Dan's lap to hear Jacky Rosen speak. Wonder if Cadish will be Rosen's speech writer.
I like Sean, but that suit is a loser. Nevada law is clear that a property owner does not owe a duty to protect someone not injured on the owner's property.
A few questionable things in there. I think they're implying the HOA should evict a tenant? Which is not within an HOA's powers at all. But get enough carriers as defendants and maybe one will bite? Or get a judge that is a toss up and hope you get to a trial and play to the emotions of the jury? Got lucky there with Tim Williams.
Ah, there is no case there. And I don't like Sean.
My initial thought would be that the owners/landlords would have liability if you could show notice, but I'm not sure what the HOA or management company would be in a position to do other than issue fines perhaps. What I am sure of is that the 12(b)(5) briefing will be interesting to read.
Without reading the Complaint, I guess I can't fully evaluate the merits of Claggett's claim, but based on the article, this lawsuit against the HOA does not seem to fly. What duty is imposed on the HOA, and by what document/statute?
Your initial thought is incorrect. Sean is suing the owner of the house that was allegedly supposed to be the target of the shooting. Sean is not suing the owner of the little girl's house. The owner of the intended house has no duty to protect someone in another house from a shooting, even if the owner knew that its tenants were wild, gang members, etc. as alleged in the complaint.
I also agree that the claims against the HOA fail. The fact that the HOA could have allegedly evicted the tenants of the Section 8 house (i.e. the intended house) pursuant to the CCRs is not a duty that requires the HOA to act. Plus, the HOA will move to dismiss or stay the case and require Sean's client to mediation pursuant to NRS 38.310, since the claim necessarily involves the interpretation of the CCRs.
So if I rent a house to a guy running a meth lab, and I am aware of it but do nothing, and the meth lab blows up and injures a neighbor, or destroys their home, then I have no duty to the injured neighbor? I'm not going to take the time to research it, but I have a hard time believing that would be the law. I agree re the HOA and property management claims.
It is next to impossible to get summary judgment on a negligence claim. As long as it goes before a jury, defendants have exposure and will possibly settle rather than face a jury on these horrendous facts. The house was a public nuisance and no one did anything about it. Tough case, yes. But something will come out of it. Meanwhile Claggett gets lot of PR pursuing a case no one else would touch.
No case here. Lawyers are saying that. Love the sentimental touch about how Claggett brings his own daughter into it, wth does that have to do with a poor little girl getting murdered? All about him.
Stupid stupid case. Like Rule 11 Sanctions bad of a case. I do not want to punish the family; however if no one takes a swing at Claggett on this one and says "Whoa you went a bridge too far…." something is horribly horribly wrong. Claggett had that Thompson verdict go to his head.
I thought Claggett and Lasso were bragging about foreclosing on Lamplight Villages' homes? Nice.
11:36 – your stated facts are different than what happened here. In your scenario, you might be liable, because the explosion (that you presumably had a duty to prevent) took place on YOUR property.
In Sean's case, the shooter (as far as I understand it) was on a public street, not on the defendant's property. Thus, they had no ability or duty to control him. Even though Sean alleges that everyone knew the defendant's house was a gang house, that still does not require the owner of the property to police the world and prevent a third party from shooting a neighbor's house, especially from a public street. There's lots of case law on this issue in Nevada.
Sounds like the community had become a fertile environment for criminal activity, the HOA and HOA mgmt knew it, and they did nothing to increase security.
@2:50,
And? The HOA does what the CC&Rs allow it to do. It's not an insurance company. They don't guarantee anything.
My condolences to the family for the death of their little girl.
If the tenant was a Section 8 tenant, good luck getting them out unless they do something that gets them kicked off the Section 8 program. Otherwise the HOA and/or property manager and/or property owner would expose themselves to a racial discrimination claim and possible violation of Section 8 participating property requirements. Section 8 is great money, very consistent, and damn near guaranteed – as long as you can put up with the problems that come with it in the neighborhoods where it is prevalent.
I just want to know what the hell is on the outside of Sean Claggett's office? It is a rip off of the apple iconic sign. What the fuck is it?
Sean Claggett is an attention seeker. During a two minute clip, he was discussing his daughter, and about how he cried about this case. Nobody gives a shit about you or your kid.
No case, hence the mentioning of tears. Maybe good for some pub.
Sean Claggett/HOA Case. Almost impossible to get summary judgment in a negligence case. As long as the case can get before a jury, then there is exposure for the defendants. As long as there is exposure, there is potential settlement value. Seems like the house was a public nuisance. Case may have to end up before Nv. S. Ct. for these issues to be ferreted out. So many issues. Criminal acts of third parties cuts off liability. By the way whatever happened to the "swing case" and that huge verdict. Anybody know.
Swingset case is up on appeal. Claggett lost the sanctions against Boyack firm which went up first on a Writ. I believe they completed Supreme Court Settlement Conference on the underlying case and are proceeding to briefing.
As to this case, let me get this straight so the HOA should have not only foreseen that a house on the block was a nuisance but should have had an Army (because it would have needed security sufficient to stop a car full of gangbangers armed to the teeth because a single private security guy with a pop-pop was not stopping anything) and THEN the HOA should have foreseen that gang bangers would not only show up in an army but would fire into the wrong house. C'mon man. Enough with the good press. I am with the poster above. This is frivolous and sanctionable.
Good press that he cares more about publicity than his client? This is not a case. Makes him look bad.
If the landlords knew they were renting to gangbangers then it was foreseeable that something like this would happen. Their liability policy is probably $1 million, so if the case survives SJ, then it will probably be offered because the exposure is so high and because the landlords, if they have an ounce of common sense, will hire personal counsel who will demand it.
St. George.
If you mean the great outdoor opportunities around St. George, then yes. If you mean St. George proper, then no. St. George somehow manages to combine the feigned piety of Provo with the materialism of Orange County. I can't imagine the hell it must be living there.
Flagstaff, Arizona
or Sedona/Verde Valley.
Cedar Mountain / Brian Head. Southern Utah is nice for outdoors stuff as long as you stay out of Zion National Park, which has been tragically ruined by NPS mismanagement and a tidal wave of Californians.
La Jolla, California or Carlsbad.
Spent a weekend in Kingman once with the wife and had fun. Not much to do but that's kind of the point. There's a couple downtown bars that have live music at night. Just a relaxing place to get away for the night.
Laughlin!
your mom's house
At the airpot to return home from NYC depositions and I found this article https://tinyurl.com/y2q2g2cl
Regards to Kim Farmer and BOG Clown Posse
"[t]hree lawyers . . . argue in a federal suit that the bar should not use mandatory dues to fund activities such as diversity initiatives, access to justice programs that help prevent deportations, and legislative drafting and advocacy." Our bar will be split soon. Why hasn't anyone filed yet?
The escape car is warming up right now. Money cannot hide stupid. I cannot believe the shit I am reading right now as I work on a responding brief by a "respected" judge's ruling.
Obviously Laughlin! No where else can a person eat so much buffet food for so little – as anyone who has ever seen me (especially in profile) can attest to.
Hmmm, getting hungry…
It's weird how I always forget Laughlin exists. And then someone reminds me of it, and I say "oh yeah, that sounds good." Then a day later, I forget about it again. Does anyone else do that?
Saw this regarding ABLE accounts – tax advantaged accounts to help disabled people save without losing eligibility for programs like Medicaid and Social Security Disability. https://www.nevadacurrent.com/blog/sisolak-signs-bill-strengthening-savings-program-for-people-with-disabilities/
I believe we also have special needs trusts that are similarly designed to help people save money, but without ruining their eligibility.
Basically, it seems like on both the federal and state level, we have created mechanisms that *lawfully* allow someone to "get around" the eligibility requirements to some degree.
I don't practice in this area, so I am probably missing something. But wtf? Why don't we just fix the eligibility standards? Instead of creating special programs that people have to know about and maybe even hire a lawyer to help with. And pay fees to a brokerage…. oh wait.
Different things for different circumstances. The goal here is to ensure that SSI and Medicaid are reserved for those in the most meager of circumstances, and not rich folks who also happen to be disabled, particularly when "disability" comes so often later in life. Even with SNTs, you are very limited in what kind of distributions you can make with the beneficiary's own assets. Make the wrong kind of distributions and you kick them off the government benefits.
Went to the CCBA judge' s mixer, too. Should've asked half the Supreme Court about reciprocity. Did not recognize Betsey Gonzalez.
Nice to see UNLV law is turning into Harry Reid's personal playground. The law school is going down the drain fast.
Dean Dan wants reciprocity to take jobs and cases away from UNLV law grads. Come sit on Dean Dan's lap to hear Jacky Rosen speak. Wonder if Cadish will be Rosen's speech writer.
The grads are loaded that Rosen is speaking at the commencement. I am not walking, because she is there.
Pissed, damn spell check.
I am surprised that UNLV is okay with Reid, considering his discriminatory statements about Asians.
Ely is only 3.5 hours away. You can ride the trains at the NNRY or check out Great Basin National Park or dig your own garnets at Garnet Hill.
Dear Judge, stay away from the fudge. It helps prevent the pudge.