Jury Waiver Clause

The right of trial by jury as declared by the state constitution or as given by a state statute is preserved to the parties inviolate. A party may demand a jury trial by serving the other parties with a written demand at any time after the commencement of the action and not later than the time of the entry of the order first setting the case for trial; filing the demand in accordance with Rule 5(d); and unless the local rules provide otherwise, depositing with the court clerk an amount of money equal to the fees to be paid the trial jurors for their services for the first day of trial. A party’s failure to properly file and serve a demand constitutes the party’s waiver of a jury trial. A proper demand for a jury trial may be withdrawn only if the parties consent, or by court order for good cause upon such terms and conditions as the court may fix. Nev. R. Civ. Pro. Rule 38

Contractual jury waivers are enforceable in Nevada, so long as they are entered into knowingly, voluntarily, and intentionally. See Lowe Enterprise Residential Partners, L.P. v. Eighth Judicial Dist., 118 Nev. 92, 100, 40 P.3d 405 (2002). In fact, the Nevada Supreme Court has determined that jury trial waivers are presumptively valid; a party opposing the validity of a jury trial waiver must show that it was not entered into knowingly, voluntarily, or intentionally. Id.

To determine the validity of a jury waiver clause, courts look at four factors:
1) the parties’ negotiations;
2) the conspicuousness of the provision;
3) the relative bargaining power of the parties; and
4) whether counsel for the waiving party had an opportunity to review the document.