LAS VEGAS, NV

McCormick Barstow’s Las Vegas office recently obtained a successful reversal on appeal from the Nevada Supreme Court in the case of Melendez v. Johnson.  Attorneys Wade Hansard, Mandy Vogel, and Jon Carlson filed an appeal after a district court denied their client’s motion to set aside a default judgment in excess of $500,000.  After briefing and oral argument, the Nevada Supreme Court subsequently issued an order on January 3, 2025 agreeing with the Firm’s client’s position and reversing the trial court’s decision.  The Supreme Court held that the district court abused its discretion in failing to set aside the default judgment under the Supreme Court’s precedent in Browning v. Dixon, which held that in order to show “due diligence” in trying to effectuate substitute service of process the plaintiff must seek to obtain the defendant insured’s contact information from the insured’s “employer or insurer.”  In the case at hand, the Court found no such attempt was made.  The Court also found that the district court should have applied the factors set forth in Yochum v. Davis in analyzing whether to set aside a default judgment.  Finally, the Court held that the district court should have analyzed whether there was a valid and enforceable pre-litigation settlement between the Plaintiff and Defendant.  

The outcome is that a more than $500,000 default judgment against the Firm’s client will be set aside and the case will proceed on its merits.