Boulder City Wrongful Death Attorneys

Motor vehicle accidents: US-93 through and around Boulder City carries a mix of local traffic, commercial vehicles, and tourists. High-speed collisions on this corridor, particularly involving drivers unfamiliar with the route, account for many fatal accidents. Fatal car accidents are among the most common wrongful death cases we handle.

Truck accidents: US-93 and US-95 are major commercial routes. Fatal truck accidents involve federal regulations, commercial insurance policies, and corporate defendants. The size and speed of commercial vehicles on these corridors means collisions are disproportionately likely to be fatal.

Pedestrian and bicycle accidents: Within Boulder City, pedestrian traffic along Nevada Way and near the historic downtown area creates risk when drivers fail to yield or are distracted. Tourist traffic unfamiliar with the area compounds the danger.

Medical negligence: When a healthcare provider’s error leads to a patient’s death, the surviving family may have a wrongful death claim against the medical provider. These claims do not run on the general two-year wrongful death clock: under NRS 41A.097, for a death occurring on or after October 1, 2023, the action generally may not be commenced more than three years after the date of injury or two years after the plaintiff discovers, or through reasonable diligence should have discovered, the injury, whichever occurs first. These cases require careful analysis of medical records and expert testimony, and the complaint must include the medical expert affidavit required by NRS 41A.071 or the district court must dismiss it without prejudice.

Premises liability: Fatal injuries from falls, structural failures, inadequate security, or other dangerous property conditions can give rise to wrongful death claims against property owners or managers.

Recreation-related accidents: Lake Mead National Recreation Area and the surrounding trails and waterways draw visitors year-round. Who can be held responsible for a fatal accident there takes work to answer. Under NRS 41.510, an owner, lessee or occupant of premises owes no duty to keep them safe for entry or use for a recreational activity, or to warn of a hazardous condition, and the statute lists camping, hiking, sightseeing and water sports among those activities. That protection does not cover a willful or malicious failure to guard or to warn against a dangerous condition, an injury where permission to take part was granted for a consideration other than any consideration paid to the landowner by the State or one of its subdivisions, or an injury caused by someone given permission to take part, to another person the owner owed a duty to keep the premises safe for or to warn. Where the place is federal, a claim against the United States runs on the Federal Tort Claims Act rather than on the Nevada period described below: the claim has to be presented in writing to the responsible federal agency within two years after it accrues, and suit has to be begun within six months after the agency mails notice of final denial (28 U.S.C. 2401(b)); presenting that claim is a prerequisite to suit, and if the agency does not finally dispose of the claim within six months the claimant may treat that as a denial and sue (28 U.S.C. 2675(a)). Have a lawyer look at where the accident happened and who controlled that place before assuming who can be sued.

You generally have two years after the cause of action accrues to file a wrongful death lawsuit in Nevada (NRS 11.190(4)(e)), but different deadlines and exceptions can apply. An action for injury or death against a provider of health care, based on alleged professional negligence, professional services rendered without consent, or an error or omission in practice, runs instead under NRS 41A.097, which for a death occurring on or after October 1, 2023 allows no more than 3 years after the date of injury or 2 years after the plaintiff discovers, or through reasonable diligence should have discovered, the injury, whichever comes first. A tort claim against the State or one of its political subdivisions must also be filed with the Attorney General or that governing body within 2 years after the cause of action accrues (NRS 41.036), a separate claim-filing requirement that is not a condition precedent to bringing an action. And the period does not run while a person entitled to bring the action was under 18 or insane when the cause of action accrued (NRS 11.250). Do not assume one of these applies to your family; ask an attorney which deadline governs your claim.

Two years may sound like a long time, but critical evidence can disappear much sooner. Surveillance footage, accident scene conditions, and witness availability all deteriorate over weeks and months. Preserving evidence early strengthens your case significantly.

If the deceased was the family’s primary earner, accurately calculating lifetime lost income requires economic analysis. If medical negligence was involved, expert testimony is essential. If the family includes out-of-state executors, there are additional procedural considerations.

Jack Bernstein has handled personal injury and wrongful death cases for over 40 years. He is personally involved in every case his firm handles, and his focus on personal injury means your case gets the depth of experience it requires. Beyond wrongful death claims, the other injury cases we handle in Boulder City include car, truck, and motorcycle collisions and falls on unsafe property.