Court Opinion

ID: 9606142
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-22 02:47:28.746414+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:02:33.246547
License: Public Domain

Batjer, J.,
dissenting:
I respectfully dissent. The facts of this case are unique and not the usual situation where an attempt is made to substitute a stranger for the party originally named after the expiration of the statutory limitation on actions. NRS 11.190(4)(e). Here, the named defendant in the action was the County of Clark, a political subdivision of the State of Nevada. As the United States Supreme Court said in Reynolds v. Sims, 377 U.S. 533, 575, 84 S.Ct. 1362, 1388, 12 L.Ed.2d 506 (1964):
Political subdivisions of States, counties, cities, or whatever — never were and never have been considered as sovereign entities. Rather, they have been traditionally regarded as subordinate governmental instrumentalities created by the State to assist in the carrying out of state governmental functions.
*720Regardless of how it is denominated, the real issue before this court is whether the district court erred when it “substituted” the State of Nevada as a party defendant and permitted the substitution to relate back to the filing of the original complaint, see NRCP 15(c),1 thereby precluding the defense by the state of the statute of limitations. I find no error.
As in Servatius v. United Resort Hotels, 85 Nev. 371, 455 P.2d 621 (1969), the intent of the plaintiff was to sue the real owner of the roadway. I agree with the observation by Gunderson, J., in his dissent that this court should not establish rules of procedure so inflexible that the state may not be substituted in place of a subdivision created for the state’s legal convenience.
I would deny the writ.

 NRCP 15(c):
“Whenever the claim or defense asserted in the amended pleading arose out of the conduct, transaction, or occurrence set forth or attempted to be set forth in the original pleading, the amendment relates back to the date of the original pleading.”