Legal Question in Civil Litigation in Nevada

You could have two grounds for suit: (1) breach of contract; (2) and equitable grounds. In order to sue for breach of contract you must first be able to establish there was a valid contract. The main issue here is whether your verbal agreement is a valid contract. In the State of Nevada any agreement for services that cannot be completed in under one (1) year must be in writing. While the facts given are unclear, more than likely the court would hold that this agreement must be in writing because not in all circumstances will the contract for the construction be completed in under one (1) year. Thus, a breach of contract action might be difficult.

Second, you could sue for unjust enrichment. Unjust enrichment occurs when one party unjustly benefits from the act of another. A person who has been unjustly enriched at the expense of another must legally return the unfairly kept money or benefits. Unjust enrichment is an equitable doctrine applied in the absence of a contract and used to prevent one person from being unjustly enriched at another's expense. Your case sounds like the typical unjust enrichment action in that your business associate unjustly benefited from your work.

If you have any questions please feel free to contact me at (702) 869-8801 or [email protected]