Last month, The Globe reported that 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. 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 has now learned that a complaint was filed against Marzola and the Nevada Bar Association has opened an investigation.
Per our report:
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. The Nevada Resorts Association launched the Nevada Resorts PAC in January of 2022.
Three of these cases were dismissed and two are still active:
| Case Name | Date Filed | Status |
| Linda Diana v. Wynn Las Vegas | 31-May-23 | Still active |
| Charis Michelsen v. Caesars Entertainment | 10-May-22 | Dismissed Jan. 5, 2023 |
| Glen Hutsell v. Mandalay Bay | 14-Apr-23 | Still active |
| Kimberly Del Toro v. New York-New York Hotel & Casino | 20-Mar-23 | Dismissed October 2023 |
| Tamara Ciesinski vs. Aria Resort & Casino Holdings, LLC | 14-Mar-22 | Dismissed with prejudice May 28, 2024 |
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.
The Globe attempted to reach Assemblywoman Marzola for comment as to if she advised her clients of her potential conflict of interest. Our request went unanswered. We have also reached out to the Nevada Bar Association for an update. At the time of publishing, we had not received a response.
We will continue to follow the investigation and update our readers with their findings.
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View Comments (3)
So who filed the complaint? Inquiring minds would like to know. All involved are likely as bad as her since this is Nevada. But perhaps she ticked the wrong person off and is now being made an example of. Will be dismissed though. Nothing more than theater to make the masses think government and oversight institutions are doing their job of keeping our attorneys and politicians 'ethical'. LOL!
One would hope Ms Marzola was familiar with the legal concept of "appearance of impropriety"
The State Bar investigating? 😂 Oh please, who are you kidding? When judge bribery is the norm why bother feigning concern over a conflict of interest? Judge Dixie Grossman of the Second Judicial District Court accepted a bribe on April 19, 2021 at 10:30AM by and through Attorney Marilyn D. York, Inc. Over the next 11 months despicable Dixie collected over $100k in prepaid Chase debit cards to defraud me out of community property while ordering me to pay half of our federal tax bill when we actually had a large credit balance with the IRS. Followed by First Amendment retaliation, falsified report resulting in false arrest, false imprisonment, excessive bail ($40k!!), conspiracy in malicious prosecution, to name a few. Everyday is “Judge Bribery Day,” in Nevada. Lie, cheat, steal—it’s the Nevada way.