Editorial: State caps too low on negligence

Monday, Oct. 25, 1999 | 9:29 a.m.

Nevada law currently has a $50,000 ceiling on the amount someone can collect if he is injured by the negligence of a state or local government. This limit has been in place since 1979 and recently there have been calls to increase the cap. Rather than increase the ceiling or abolish it completely, the 1999 Legislature established an interim committee to determine the policy and fiscal ramifications if the limit -- the lowest in the nation -- were to be changed. On Thursday that interim committee met for the first time, sparking a spirited exchange between government attorneys and trial lawyers.

James Crockett Jr., an attorney representing the Nevada Trial Lawyers Association, believes that the cap should be abolished, which is the policy of 18 other states. "We have to be totally responsible for what we do, yet the government hides behind a 500-year concept that, 'The king can do no wrong.' Government is nothing but people working for government who have the capacity to cause tremendous catastrophic losses," Crockett said. But Solicitor General Mark Ghan of the Nevada attorney general's office noted that rural counties with small budgets could be crippled by a large judgment. Fearing this scenario, Ghan contended, might lead a rural county to avoid building parks for fear of someone getting injured.

Both sides make persuasive arguments. But each also seems to ignore that if his reasoning was carried out to its logical conclusion, neither would be practical. For instance, while Crockett contends that there should be no cap at all, it is conceivable that a jury could award a huge verdict to someone that could have a devastating impact on a local government's budget, especially if it was a rural county. But Ghan's insistence that rural counties might not build parks if the cap is raised is overstated and doesn't wash, either.

This is an instance where a middle ground can be reached. It would be risky public policy to abolish the caps, but it also is wrong to leave the $50,000 ceiling alone. While no amount of money can bring back a loved one or adequately compensate for a traumatic injury, $50,000 in today's world is too low and should have been increased years ago.