According to an article in the Las Vegas Sun, (AP, Nevada high court upholds jury trial right in small cases, by Brendan Riley, 01-23-04):
“[T]he Nevada Supreme Court held Friday it’s unconstitutional for the Las Vegas Township Justice Court to deny jury trials in civil cases involving $5,000 or less.
“The [5-1] split decision overturned lower court rulings in two cases that upheld the Justice Court policy adopted in 1999 as a way to “‘preserve judicial resources.'”
The decision did not address, but would appear to draw into question, the ability to preclude juries in “small claims” matters, which are also filed in Justice Court (using secial procedures), and may include claims up to $5000. Nevada’s attempts at increasing access and conserving judicial resources by making court procedures more user-friendly (especially through its self-help centers, which we discussed here) may also be in jeopardy.
The two cases in question involved auto accidents.
Some sectors of the Bar may rejoice at this turn of events, which will mean more work for lawyers, but it does not bode well for increasing accessibility to civil justice for the poor and middle-class consumer.