The American Tort Reform Association (ATRA) has recently published two reports examining the political donations and advertising of Nevada trial lawyers. The results of these studies offer insights into how these legal professionals influence politics and public opinion in the state.
In a press release from ATRA, it was disclosed that the first report, released last month, outlines the significant sums of money that leading plaintiffs’ firms donate to political campaigns. ATRA estimates that since 2017, trial law firms have invested over $4.56 million in political campaigns of candidates they deemed favorable. The analysis revealed that Richard Harris Law and Claggett & Sykes law firms were at the top of the contributor list, with donations exceeding $860,000 and $650,000 respectively.
According to the same press release, ATRA's analysis also discovered that candidates for judicial positions who are trial lawyers often received substantial contributions from their peers. This suggests a "concerted effort to influence the composition of the judiciary," says ATRA. Notable recipients of donations from Nevada’s leading plaintiffs’ law firms include Steve Sisolak for Governor; Adam Ganz for the 8th Judicial District Court, Department 17; Aaron Darnell Ford for Attorney General; and Lidia Stiglich for Supreme Court. Las Vegas trial attorney Adam Ganz received more than $133,000 from plaintiffs’ firms.
The second report highlighted by the press release delves into Nevada trial lawyers' advertising expenditures in 2023. It found that they spent over $137.2 million on more than 1.6 million legal services advertisements within the state. The report also discloses that personal injury firms aired most ads, with over 63% focusing on auto, motorcycle, and truck accident claims.
"These reports provide keen insight into the operation of the 'trial lawyer playbook,'" said Tiger Joyce, ATRA president. "They spend obscene amounts of money on ads that scare consumers to solicit more clients, then they financially prop up the campaigns of judges across the state."