Senate Bill No. 15–Senator Schneider
Prefiled January 11, 2001
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Referred to Committee on Judiciary
SUMMARY—Prohibits attorney whose practice involves
matters relating to personal injury from acting as arbitrator in action
relating to personal injury. (BDR 3‑34)
FISCAL NOTE: Effect on Local Government: No.
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EXPLANATION
– Matter in bolded italics is new; matter
between brackets [omitted material] is material to be omitted.
Green numbers along
left margin indicate location on the printed bill (e.g., 5-15 indicates page 5, line 15).
AN ACT relating to civil actions; prohibiting an
attorney whose practice involves matters relating to personal injury from
acting as an arbitrator in an action relating to personal injury; and providing other matters properly relating
thereto.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEVADA, REPRESENTED IN
SENATE AND ASSEMBLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
1-1 Section 1. NRS 38.255 is hereby amended to read as follows:
1-2 38.255 1. The
rules adopted by the supreme court pursuant to NRS
1-3 38.253 to provide guidelines for the establishment
by a district court of a
1-4 program must include provisions for a:
1-5 (a) Mandatory
program for the arbitration of civil actions pursuant to
1-6 NRS 38.250.
1-7 (b) Voluntary
program for the arbitration of civil actions if the cause of
1-8 action arises in the State of Nevada and the amount
in issue exceeds
1-9 $40,000.
1-10 (c) Voluntary
program for the use of binding arbitration in all civil
1-11 actions.
1-12 2. The rules must provide that the district
court of any judicial district
1-13 whose population is 100,000 or more:
1-14 (a) Shall
establish programs pursuant to paragraphs (a), (b) and (c) of
1-15 subsection 1.
1-16 (b) May set
fees and charge parties for arbitration if the amount in issue
1-17 exceeds $40,000.
1-18 The rules may provide for similar programs for the
other judicial districts.
1-19 3. The rules must exclude the following from any
program of
1-20 mandatory arbitration:
2-1 (a) Actions
in which the amount in issue, excluding attorney’s fees,
2-2 interest and court costs, is more than $40,000 or
less than the maximum
2-3 jurisdictional amounts specified in NRS 4.370 and
73.010;
2-4 (b) Class
actions;
2-5 (c) Actions
in equity;
2-6 (d) Actions
concerning the title to real estate;
2-7 (e) Probate
actions;
2-8 (f) Appeals
from courts of limited jurisdiction;
2-9 (g) Actions
for declaratory relief;
2-10 (h) Actions
involving divorce or problems of domestic relations;
2-11 (i) Actions
brought for relief based on any extraordinary writs;
2-12 (j) Actions
for the judicial review of an administrative decision; and
2-13 (k) Actions
in which the parties, pursuant to a written agreement
2-14 executed before the accrual of the cause of action,
have submitted the
2-15 controversy to arbitration or any other alternative
method for resolving a
2-16 dispute.
2-17 4. The rules must include:
2-18 (a) Provisions that prohibit an attorney
whose practice involves
2-19 matters relating
to personal injury from acting as an arbitrator in an
2-20 action relating
to personal injury;
2-21 (b) Guidelines for the award of attorney’s fees and
maximum
2-22 limitations on the costs to the parties of the
arbitration;
2-23 [(b)]
(c) Disincentives to
appeal; and
2-24 [(c)]
(d) Provisions for
trial upon the exercise by either party of his
2-25 right to a trial anew after the arbitration.
2-26 5. The supreme court shall, on or before
February 1 of each odd-
2-27 numbered year, submit a report to the director of
the legislative counsel
2-28 bureau for transmittal to the chairmen of the
assembly and senate standing
2-29 committees on the judiciary. The report must
include, for the period since
2-30 the previous such report, if any:
2-31 (a) A listing
of the number of actions which were submitted to
2-32 arbitration or other alternative methods of resolving
disputes pursuant to
2-33 NRS 38.250 or 38.258 and their manner of
disposition;
2-34 (b) A
statement of the amount of money collected in each judicial
2-35 district pursuant to NRS 19.0315 and a summary of
the manner in which
2-36 the fees were expended; and
2-37 (c) Any
recommendations for legislation or other information regarding
2-38 the programs on arbitration deemed relevant by the
supreme court.
2-39 Sec. 2. The
amendatory provisions of this act apply to an action that is
2-40 filed on or after October 1, 2001.
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