Jim Cavanaugh is Senior Counsel in the Las Vegas office, and a member of the Construction practice group.  Jim brings over 25 years of experience in defending complex construction defect and commercial litigation, including professional negligence actions, as well as defense of general liability and casualty claims, involving significant injuries and wrongful death actions.

Jim has represented and defended over 200 construction-industry business owners and professionals, including general contractors, subcontractors, suppliers, manufacturers, architects and engineers, in construction defect litigation involving residential and commercial projects, in Nevada, including the reinforcing steel contractor in the MGM CityCenter Construction Master Litigation. Jim’s experience also includes the successful defense of a forensic expert architect in a post-construction defect litigation claim of over $5.3 Million in damages for alleged professional negligence, obtaining summary judgment for the expert architect, in Diehl Group Architects v. Nancy Quon APC, in Clark County District Court. 

Jim was responsible for constructing a detailed analysis and evaluation of potential liability and damages for a major hotel and casino’s excess insurance carrier for the largest mass shooting in modern U.S. history. In addition to his wide range of experience as a defense litigator, Jim has also served as a Deputy City Attorney in the Las Vegas City Attorney’s office, civil division.

Jim served in the United States Marine Corps from 1969-1972.

Admissions

• Nevada
• California
• U.S. District Court, District of Nevada
• U.S. District Courts, Northern, Central and Southern Districts of California
• U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit

Memberships

• Clark County Bar Association
• Los Angeles County Bar Association
• DRI-The Voice of the Defense Bar
• Las Vegas Defense Lawyers Association