Opinion ID: 2371971
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Dismissal of Berkson and Malacky's complaint

Text: On appeal, Berkson and Malacky argue that the district court erred in dismissing their complaint because NRS 11.340 clearly and unambiguously granted them the right to file a new complaint after this court reversed the jury verdict in their favor. NRS 11.340 provides that [i]f an action shall be commenced within the time prescribed therefor, and a judgment therein for the plaintiff be reversed on appeal, the plaintiff, or if the plaintiff dies and the cause of action survives, the plaintiffs heirs or representatives, may commence a new action within 1 year after the reversal. According to Berkson and Malacky, because NRS 11.340 authorizes the filing of a new complaint after the reversal on appeal of a judgment in their favor, that statute necessarily precludes the application of claim and issue preclusion to their new complaint, and thus, the district court's dismissal of their complaint on such grounds was improper. This court has not previously addressed NRS 11.340, which has not been substantively amended or altered since its enactment. [4] Words in a statute will be given their plain meaning unless such an approach would violate the spirit of the act. V & S Railway v. White Pine County, 125 Nev. ___, ___, 211 P.3d 879, 882 (2009). Further, a statute will be construed in order to give meaning to its entirety, and this court `will read each sentence, phrase, and word to render it meaningful within the context of the purpose of the legislation.' Harris Assocs. v. Clark County Sch. Dist., 119 Nev. 638, 642, 81 P.3d 532, 534 (2003) (quoting Coast Hotels v. State, Labor Comm'n, 117 Nev. 835, 841, 34 P.3d 546, 550 (2001)). As Berkson and Malacky correctly point out, the plain language of NRS 11.340 explicitly authorized their filing of a new action after this court reversed the judgment in their favor on appeal. And if NRS 11.340 is to have any real effect, it necessarily follows that the doctrines of claim and issue preclusion could not be applied to bar a new action filed based on that statute. Claim and issue preclusion essentially bar recovery on or prevent relitigation of previously resolved issues. See Five Star Capital Corp. v. Ruby, 124 Nev. 1048, 1054-55, 194 P.3d 709, 713 (2008) (explaining that claim preclusion acts to bar claims brought in a subsequent action between the same parties that either were brought or could have been brought in a prior action, and issue preclusion applies, under certain circumstances, when issues addressed in an earlier suit arise again in a later suit). To that end, these principles would apply to bar an action brought under NRS 11.340 and would render the statute meaningless, as any new action filed under the statute would automatically be subject to summary dismissal on preclusion grounds, which is exactly what happened in the underlying case. Thus, under this court's established rules of statutory construction, NRS 11.340 must be read as not only authorizing the filing of a new action after the reversal of a judgment in plaintiffs' favor on appeal, but as barring the application of claim and issue preclusion to any new action filed under the statute. This conclusion does not end our analysis, however. In responding to Berkson and Malacky's appellate contentions, respondents argue that NRS 11.340 violates the separation of powers doctrine and should be struck down as unconstitutional. Specifically, they contend that the statute unduly hampers the judiciary's ability to manage litigation through the application of the doctrines of claim and issue preclusion, and as a result, runs afoul of separation of powers principles. Berkson and Malacky dispute that respondents' separation of powers arguments provide a basis for affirming the district court's decision. For the reasons set forth below, we agree with respondents' contention that NRS 11.340 violates the separation of powers doctrine.