Dennis L. Kennedy

Partner

For over forty years, Dennis Kennedy has been representing “good people with bad problems” in the assertion and defense of their rights. These people include judges, lawyers, pharmaceutical and tobacco companies, casinos, and manufacturers and purveyors of various other products and services. His thriving commercial litigation practice has emphasized class actions and complex commercial litigation, antitrust law, hospital and healthcare law, and legal ethics. He is an author and frequent speaker in the areas of litigation and legal ethics. Mr. Kennedy is listed in Best Lawyers in America for commercial litigation and “bet the company” cases. He has also been consistently ranked by Chambers U.S.A. as one of the top five commercial litigators in Nevada. To quote Mr. Kennedy: “When your name is up in lights, someone is always trying to unplug the power cord. My job is to keep them from doing that, and to make them pay if they do.”

Representative Matters
Professional & Civic Involvement
  • Chairman, Board of Trustees, Nathan Adelson Hospice
  • Past Member (1989-1997) and Chairman (1992-1994) State Bar of Nevada Disciplinary Board, Southern District of Nevada
  • Member and Past Chairman (2001-2009), Nevada State Bar Committee on Ethics and Professional Responsibility
  • Member of State Bar Committee on the Revisions to the Nevada Rules of Professional Conduct (the “Ethics 2000 Committee”) (2003-2004)
  • Member of Nevada Supreme Court Article 6 Commission (2007-2011) (Commission’s projects were (i) the proposed intermediate court of appeals, (ii) changes in judicial selection process and (iii) changes in judicial campaign fundraising and disclosure).  Final report of Commission issued June 2011
  • Nevada Supreme Court Judicial Education Requirements Study Committee (2015) (Committee was charged with studying the subject of judicial education and making a recommendation to the Nevada Supreme Court.  Final report submitted April 2016)
  • Submission of memoranda and giving of oral presentation to Nevada Supreme Court regarding proposed amendment to Nevada R.P.C. 8.4 regarding lawyers’ ownership of marijuana/cannabis enterprises.  ADKT No. 0495
  • Member of Nevada Supreme Court Commission to Study the Statutes and Rules of the Commission on Judicial Discipline and Update the Nevada Code of Judicial Conduct.  ADKT 0582 (December 2021)
  • Submission of memorandum to Nevada Supreme Court regarding proposed amendment to Nevada RPC 8.4 regarding lawyer misconduct.  ADKT 526
  • Member, Nevada Supreme Court Committee on the Study of Judicial Elections (1995)
  • Member, Nevada Supreme Court Committee on the Public Discipline of Attorneys (1993)
  • Adjunct Professor of Law, William S. Boyd School of Law, University of Nevada, Las Vegas (2001-2008; 2015)
  • Co-Editor, Nevada Civil Practice Manual (2000-2013)
  • Fellow, American College of Trial Lawyers
  • Member, American Bar Association Sections of Litigation and Professional Responsibility
Areas of Practice
Articles, Publications, and Lectures

Articles & Publications

  • Co-Author, Nevada Civil Practice Manual (5th ed., 2001)(2003-2013 supplements)
  • Co-Editor (with Professor Jeffrey Stempel), Nevada Civil Practice Manual (5th ed.) (2003-2013 supplements)
  • Solo and Small Firm Ethics Traps, Clark County Bar Association COMMUNIQUE (December 2013)
  • Some Things That Can Hurt You If You Don’t Pay Attention, Clark County Bar Association COMMUNIQUE (November 2015)
  • Co-Author, And Now ... A Few Words About Fees, Clark County Bar Association COMMUNIQUE (May 2024)

Lectures

  • National Court Reporters Association (8/1/21): “Legal Ethics for Court Reporters.”
  • Clark County Bar Association (6/18/21): “Ethics Unbound and Unmasked.”
  • The Knowledge Group (1/25/21): Legal Ethics. “Exploring Trends, Challenges, and Best Compliance Practices.”
  • Legal Aid Center of Southern Nevada (2/12/21): Current Issues In Ethics.
  • State Bar of Nevada, Family Law Section (12/3/20): “What Does It Mean To Be a Zealous Advocate?”
  • Clark County Bar Association (4/15/20): “Ethics? Ethics? I Got Your Ethics Right Here.”
  • National Business Institute (NBI) (6/19/19): “Ethics in Business Law”
  • Clark County Bar Association (5/14/19): “Things They Didn’t Tell You In Law School”
  • Clark County Bar Association (5/9/18): “Current Topics for New (and Not So New) Lawyers” Current Issues in Ethics
Accolades
  • Best Lawyers In America – Commercial Litigation, Appellate Practice, Legal Malpractice (Defendants) and Ethics and Professional Responsibility Law (1991-present)
  • Named the Best Lawyers® 2012 and 2014 “Lawyer of the Year” for Healthcare Law in Las Vegas
  • Named to the Mountain States’ Super Lawyers list since 2007
  • Named to the  Mountain States’  “Top 10” and “Top 100” lists since 2015
  • Benchmark Litigation Star since 2018 – Commercial and Anti-Trust Litigation
  • Chambers U.S.A. – one of the top 5 commercial litigators in Nevada (2005-present)
  • Martindale Hubbell “A” “V” rating
Education
  • University of Washington, J.D., 1975
  • University of Washington, B.A. Economics, 1972
Bar & Court Admissions
  • State Bar of Nevada
  • United States District Court for the District of Nevada
  • United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
  • United States Supreme Court
Dennis L. Kennedy

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