Conflict of Interest? Democratic Legislator Accepted Campaign Donations from Defendants In Multiple Lawsuits

Democratic Assemblywoman Elaine Marzola (AD- 21) received a combined $22,500 in campaign donations from the Nevada Resorts PAC and MGM Resorts International while representing plaintiffs in lawsuits against their members and properties. To date, three of these cases have been dismissed, including one with prejudice.

Assemblywoman Marzola took two donations from the Nevada Resorts PAC totaling $15,000 between October 2022 and November 2023. She also received $7,500 from MGM Resorts International who owns or operates Mandalay Bay, New York-New York and the Aria Resort and Casino.

The Nevada Resorts Association launched the Nevada Resorts PAC in January of 2022.

Since May 2022, Marzola has represented four plaintiffs in lawsuits against Wynn Las Vegas, Caesars Entertainment, Mandalay Bay, New York-New York Hotel & Casino, and Aria Resort & Casino Holdings, all of which are members of the Nevada Resorts Association that funds the PAC.

Three of these cases were dismissed and two are still active:

In her “slip and fall” case against the Aria, which also named MGM as a defendant, Marzola accepted her donation from MGM two days after a short-trial discovery offer for the case. The case was dismissed with prejudice on May 28, 2024 (see below).

Ellen Whittemore, the Executive Vice President and General Counsel of Wynn, is also the Chair of the Board of Nevada Resorts Association. This raises further concerns, as the chair of the organization donating to Marzola’s campaign is the lead lawyer for the company that Marzola is suing.

These donations and lawsuits raise ethical questions for Marzola and could have given her incentive to not provide her clients with effective legal representation. According to the Nevada Bar Association, her legal actions against and campaign donations from the defendants named in her lawsuits could be a conflict of interest if not properly disclosed to her clients.

The Globe attempted to reach Assemblywoman Marzola for comment as to if she advised her clients of her potential conflict of interest, but at the time of publishing, we had not received a reply.

We will continue to follow this developing story and will update the article with a comment from Marzola if and when received.