Lowe Enterprises v. The Robert Jones Co.
Published: Jan. 7, 2003 | Result Date: Jul. 23, 2002 | Filing Date: Jan. 1, 1900 |Case number: A403774 – $0
Judge
Court
Clark County District, Nevada
Attorneys
Plaintiff
Andra Barmash Greene
(Irell & Manella LLP)
Defendant
Facts
The plaintiff, an Orange County based investment entity for the Los Angeles County Employees Retirement Association, loaned $7 million to The Sanctuary Ltd. for use in constructing a residential development in Las Vegas. The loan was secured by a deed of trust subordinate to Bank of America's construction loans. The plaintiff's loan was also secured by a guaranty given by the Sanctuary's backer, Robert V. Jones (a longtime Las Vegas developer) and his related entities, the Robert Jones Company and the Robert V. Jones Corporation (the Guarantors). Lowe filed suit after Sanctuary defaulted on the loan. Sanctuary and the Guarantors cross-claimed, asserting various lender-liability theories against Lowe, as well as against Bank of America.
Result
Lowe won summary judgment on its claim for breach of contract against the Guarantors. Lowe was also successful in its motion for summary judgment on all the defendants' counterclaims. The defendant pointed out that, in fact, the defendants merely stipulated to the amount of judgment based on the contract. The defendant also stated that the Nevada Court previously reversed the lower court's certification of a summary judgment for Lowe on grounds that the court had failed to resolve the factual issues raised by the counterclaims. The case was remanded, and the district court certified it again, and again failed to resolve the factual issues raised by the counterclaims. Accordingly, the defendant have appealed and expect that the courts entry of summary judgment will be revised again.
Other Information
Despite provisions in the loan documents and guaranty that the parties waived their right to a jury trial, the defendants requested that the case proceed to trial by jury. The plaintiff moved to strike the jury demand. The trial court denied the plaintiff's motion. The plaintiff sought a writ of mandamus directing the trial court to strike the jury demand. The Nevada Supreme Court ruled, as a matter of first impression, that pre-litigation jury waivers are valid and enforecable in the state of Nevada and directed the trial court to strike the defendant's jury demand.
For reprint rights or to order a copy of your photo:
Email
jeremy@reprintpros.com
for prices.
Direct dial: 949-702-5390