No matter the result in the trial court, many disputes are decided at the appellate level. Often, the counsel you retain will make or break your chance of success on appeal because getting the right result requires specific appellate skills. These include: insightful analysis of the issues; thorough research of the law; careful review of the factual record; persuasive brief writing; cogent oral argument; and knowledge of the rules. McDonald Carano’s appellate team has the abilities in each of these areas to place it among the most experienced and qualified in Nevada.
McDonald Carano handles appeals – simple to complex – at all levels of appellate court and administrative agency review. Our success spans the Nevada Supreme Court, California’s Court of Appeals and the Federal Court of Appeal, in particular the Ninth Circuit. McDonald Carano played an instrumental role in the formation of Nevada’s Court of Appeals and the concurrent overhaul of the Nevada Rules of Appellate Procedure. Our attorneys also served as lead editor and chapter authors for the Nevada Appellate Practice Manual (2018 ed.).
The practice of appellate law demands intellectual acuity and discipline to develop precision briefs and compelling arguments. Our appellate team consistently delivers the exceptional writing, analytical acumen and oral advocacy skills needed to present our clients’ position in the most persuasive way possible. We also use our extensive and collective experience as judicial law clerks in the Nevada Supreme Court, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, and other state and federal courts to develop appellate strategy and provide the highest caliber representation.
Our services include:
APPEALS: We handle all aspects of appeals, starting from post-judgment motion practice in the trial court through issuance of the appellate court mandate and at every step in between;
WRIT PETITIONS: We draft, argue and defend petitions that seek immediate writ relief from pre-judgment trial court errors;
TRIAL COURT SUPPORT: We provide strategic support and analysis in the trial court by reviewing motions, jury instructions and proposed court orders to ensure that a proper record is made and issues are effectively preserved for future appeal;
COACHING: We assist other counsel in the appeal process, including consulting on appeal strategy, providing input on briefs and conducting moot court sessions to prepare for oral argument;
AMICUS REPRESENTATION: We identify pending cases with major policy implications, assemble amicus coalitions, draft amicus curiae briefs and present oral argument on highly relevant topics that have the potential to alter the legal landscape;
ADMINISTRATIVE APPEALS: We represent clients in proceedings before regulatory agencies, municipal and county governing entities, professional disciplinary boards and in the judicial review process that may follow.
February 1, 2020, The Writ, “Appellate Briefs” In an article reviewing empirical research on judicial decisions, the authors addressed whether “aversion to reversal can produce undesirable, strategic effects on judicial decisions.” Rachlinski,…
January 14, 2020–McDonald Carano is pleased to announce the promotion of attorneys Laura Jacobsen, Rory Kay and Amanda Perach to Partner, effective January 1, 2020. “We congratulate Laura, Rory and…
November 1, 2019, McDonald Carano, Nevada’s law firm for businesses and high-net-worth individuals, is pleased to announce the firm has been named one of the country’s “Best Law Firms” in…
November 1, 2019, The Writ, “Appellate Briefs” Participation by a private entity as an amicus curiae at the Nevada Supreme Court is discretionary and permitted only by leave of court. NRAP 29(a)…
September 1, The Writ, Appellate Briefs While the federal court system has “Twombly” and “Iqbal,” Nevada state courts have “Buzz Stew.” Practitioners in Nevada are very used to seeing Buzz Stew, LLC v. City of…
June 1, 2019, The Writ, “Appellate Briefs” –Briefs submitted to the Nevada Supreme Court must contain a “concise statement of the applicable standard of review.” NRAP 28(a)(10)(B). This requirement is not…
April 1, 2019, The Writ, “Appellate Briefs” A “writ of prohibition is an appropriate remedy to correct an order that compels disclosure of privileged information.” L.V. Dev. Assocs. v. Eighth Jud. Dist. Ct.,…
February 1, 2019, The Writ, “Appellate Briefs” For nearly thirty years, the rule in Nevada has been that cases consolidated by a district court become a single case for all appellate purposes. …
January 1, 2019, The Writ, “Appellate Briefs” In 2015, the Nevada legislature amended Nevada’s anti-SLAPP statute to require that the “plaintiff must meet the same burden of proof that a plaintiff has been required to meet pursuant…
December 1, 2018, The Writ, Appellate Briefs On October 10, 2018, the Nevada Supreme Court issued an order seeking public comment on proposed changes to Nevada Rules of Appellate Procedure that could…
November 1, 2018, Las Vegas, NV – McDonald Carano, Nevada’s law firm for businesses and high-net-worth individuals, is pleased to announce the firm has been named one of the country’s…
November 1, 2018, The Writ, “Appellate Briefs” How does a plaintiff go from winning $6,000,000 after trial to having the entire case dismissed eight years later after an appeal? One…
October, 2018, The Writ, “Appellate Briefs” Nevada law allows the “prevailing party” to recover costs and, in some cases, fees. But it is not always clear who qualifies as the…
August/September, 2018, Western Water Law & Policy Reporter, Pages 301-303 — In the long-running dispute over the waters of the Walker River, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals recently certified…
September 1, 2018, The Writ, “Appellate Briefs” — Video conference meetings have become routine. Video conference depositions are rarer, but are becoming more and more common occurrences. However, I think…
August 1, 2018, Legal Aid Center of Southern Nevada, “Pro Bono Project” A task force of Clark County commissioners, judges, social workers, attorneys, and children’s advocates recognized the need to provide abused…
July/August, 2018, The Writ, “Appellate Briefs”–Appellate practice begins in the district court. That is where you make your record on appeal and preserve issues so that the judgment can be…
The Writ, Appellate Briefs, June 1, 2018 In the recent case of James J. Cotter, Jr. v. Eighth Judicial District Court, 134 Nev. Adv. Op. 32, the Court was faced…
Casino and Gambling News, May 30, 2018 By Lars Jones with additional reporting by K. Morrison This is part two of a two-part series wherein we interview AG Burnett, former…
Casino and Gambling News, May 29, 2018 by Lars Jones and additional reporting by K. Morrison When New Jersey filed briefs with the Supreme Court on the future of sports betting last August, many…
8LasVegasNOW.com, May 14, 2018, By Karen Castro There was a precedent set Monday for a much anticipated ruling in the sports gaming industry when the United States Supreme Court struck…
The Nevada Independent, May 8, 2018 By Riley Snyder The politically charged battle over a ballot question seeking to ban sanctuary cities has made its first stop in Nevada’s highest…
The Writ, Appellate Briefs, May 2018, Pages 8 & 12 On March 29, 2018, the Nevada Supreme Court issued an important decision that affects public entities and those who seek…
RAN – Retail Association of Nevada, April, 2018 On April 17, 2018, the United States Supreme Court (SCOTUS) will hear oral arguments in the case of South Dakota v. Wayfair, Inc. The…
The Writ, Appellate Briefs, April 1, 2018 As attorneys, we are trained and well-versed in representing our clients. Those of us who practice litigation are used to representing parties to…
The Writ, Appellate Briefs, March 01, 2018 “The inherent power of the court over attorneys is not limitless.” With this emphatic language, the Supreme Court recently held that a Nevada…
ABA Water Resources Committee Newsletter, March 1, 2018 By Debbie Leonard and Micheline Fairbank Over 100 years ago in the case of Winters v. United States, 207 U.S. 564 (1908),…
The Writ – Appellate Briefs, Feb 1, 2018 In the recently issued case of Gardner v. Eighth Judicial District Court, 133 Nev. Adv. Op. 89 (Nov. 22, 2017), the Nevada…
The Writ – Appellate Briefs, Jan 2018, Vol. 40 The Nevada Supreme Court recently addressed the circumstances in which judicial review of an administrative decision is available. In State of…
Most Nevada attorneys are at least generally aware of the Nevada law that prohibits a person from recording a telephone call without consent of the other party to the call….
My research on Internet libel takedown orders has profited tremendously from the Lumen Database (formerly ChillingEffects.org), a website to which Google and others archive takedown requests. I’ve seen a couple…
Often, when the Nevada Supreme Court encounters an issue of first impression that might have wide-reaching implications for the state, it has only the benefit of the parties’ competing arguments…
Business professionals often complain that the lack of case law in Nevada creates a climate of uncertainty for business decision-making. The Nevada Supreme Court has been working to change that…
The petitioners seek review of a Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals case and ask the Supreme Court to address the scope of state power to regulate groundwater when there are…
The Supreme Court had a very productive summer, issuing numerous wide-reaching published decisions. For this month’s column, I thought it might be useful to discuss briefly a few cases in…
Attorneys and litigants alike often wonder how their case makes its way through the Supreme Court. You file a notice of appeal and docketing statement and then brief the case…
In a recent case, the Nevada Supreme Court clarified when an attorney and his new firm should be disqualified based on the attorney’s employment at a previous firm. In New…
The Supreme Court recently made some important revisions to NRAP 17 that reach beyond the appellate courts. These changes could influence how and where a plaintiff files its complaint in the…
In this week’s episode of HOA Superpowers, our hero, Superpriority Lien Man, takes on his twin nemeses, the Due Process Clause and the Takings Clause. In the end, the Due…
Adam Hosmer-Henner, an attorney in the Reno law office of McDonald Carano, has been elected as a partner within the firm. Hosmer-Henner practices in the firm’s complex business litigation and…
It happens more than we’d like. You’re in the midst of contentious litigation and the judge issues a “bad” ruling. Most times, you just lick your wounds and press on….
The Writ November 1, 2016 You won! After hard-fought litigation, the district court issued its judgment in favor of your client. Well … mostly in favor of your client. The…
By SEAN WHALEY LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL CAPITAL BUREAU CARSON CITY — An attorney representing a Nevada prison inmate who was denied a special diet he had requested as a practicing…
http://www.nevadabusiness.com/2016/04/industry-focus-attorneys-4/ Most industries have experienced an energetic pick up in business as the economy has recovered. Nevada law offices are enjoying an improved economy but are still facing their share…
By Robert Horne Special to the Las Vegas Business Press Nevada attorneys worried about navigating the state’s new court of appeals and appellate framework now have a comprehensive guide to…
Eric Kroh of Law 360 Law360, New York (December 7, 2015, 6:22 PM EST) — Members of the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday delved into arguments that they should overturn their own…
Las Vegas Business Press By Robert Horne When voters approved Nevada’s new appellate court in November, they may also have improved the state’s business climate. Local attorneys surveyed by the…
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