Legal Question in Civil Litigation in Nevada

I am a California resident with a rental property in Las Vegas. After a housekeeping company performed an unacceptable job and the owner failed to respond to my complaints, I cancelled the payment. She refused to negotiate and sent me a series of inappropriate emails. She sued me in small claims, but the judge recused herself from the case stating that the plaintiff's company had cleaned her home. Now I would have to pay to fly out again to fight this case. I have a few questions:

1. If she gets a judgement against me (because I don't show up) is it possible for her to enforce the judgement since I am a CA resident?

2. I have discovered that she did not have a business license in LV at the time the work was done. Can I file for a dismissal based on this fact?

3. She sued me under her name, not the cleaning company name. Is this grounds for dismissal?


Asked on 12/02/10, 10:47 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Paul Malikowski Malikowski Law Offices, Ltd.

According to the Las Vegas small claims website, " . . . the party(s) being sued MUST CURRENTLY reside, work, or do business in the Las Vegas Township, and (the Plaintiff) MUST be able to provide a current address, not a P O Box, for the Defendant.

Your attorney should research whether merely owning real property in the township in which the Small Claims Court sits is either (1) legal residency, (2) local employment or (3) conducting business sufficient to confer any jurisdiction over the dispute.

Since there are very few cases arising out of the Small Claims courts in Nevada that have been decided by the Nevada Supreme Court to providing any clear guiding precedent in such matters, your attorney will have to conduct substantial legal research and spend considerable time crafting a compelling argument supporting a motion to quash the proceeding. Worse yet, your attorney may tell you that by voluntarily appearing in Court while you were representing yourself, you irrevocably waived the right to contest jurisdiction.

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Answered on 12/09/10, 4:52 pm


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