Title: Jitnan v. Oliver
Citation: 127 Nev. Adv. Op. No. 35
Docket Number: 
State: Nevada
Issuer: Nevada Supreme Court
Date: July 7, 2011

Jitnan v. Oliver Annotate this Case Justia Opinion Summary Appellant Joonsong Jitnan and his wife instituted a personal injury action against Ryan Oliver for injuries arising out of an automobile accident. During the voir dire, appellants exercised a challenge for cause to a prospective juror. The district court denied the challenge for cause, and appellants subsequently exercised a peremptory challenge on the prospective juror. After the trial, Jitnan appealed, arguing (1) the district court abused its discretion denying the challenge for cause to the prospective juror, and (2) the court's erroneous denial of the challenge for cause required reversal because in using a peremptory challenge to cure the district court's error, appellants lost one of their peremptory challenges, which was prejudicial. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) when a prospective juror expresses a potentially disqualifying bias or prejudice and is inconsistent in his or her responses regarding that preconception upon further inquiry, the district court must set forth the reasons for its grant or denial of the challenge for cause; and (2) although the district court in this case failed to set forth its reasons for denying the challenge for cause, there was no prejudicial error requiring reversal because the jury that decided appellants' case was fair and impartial. Read more Want to stay in the know about new opinions from the Supreme Court of Nevada? Sign up for free summaries delivered directly to your inbox. Learn More › You already receive new opinion summaries from Supreme Court of Nevada. Did you know we offer summary newsletters for even more practice areas and jurisdictions? Explore them here . Download PDF