Landreth v. Malik
Annotate this CaseAppellant Dlynn Landreth and Respondent Amit Malik lived together between 2001 and 2004 and moved multiple times through multiple states. The couple never married and had no children. Ms. Landreth ended the relationship prior to moving to Nevada and purchased a home shortly after moving to Las Vegas. The couple briefly reunited, but by September, 2005, the relationship was over. Mr. Malik contended that the decision to move to Las Vegas was a joint decision and that Ms. Landreth used joint money for the down payment on the house. In 2006, Mr. Malik sued Ms. Landreth in family court seeking half of the equity in the house. Ms. Landreth had difficulty obtaining counsel and raising a defense to Mr. Malik’s complaint. She asked for multiple extensions of time, each of which Mr. Malik granted. In February, 2007, Mr. Malik grew weary of the delays and asked the court to enter a default judgment and grant him equity in the Las Vegas house. The court entered a default against Ms. Landreth, and she appealed, arguing that the family court did not have jurisdiction to hear the case since family law was not implicated by the underlying facts. Ms. Landreth also argued that she did not receive proper notice of the default judgment. The Supreme Court concluded that the family court maintained all the constitutional powers of a district court judge and had jurisdiction over Mr. Malik’s claim. Furthermore, the Court found that Mr. Malik did not serve Ms. Landreth with proper notice of his intent to seek a default judgment against her. The Court reversed the decision of the lower court and remanded the case for further proceedings.
Some case metadata and case summaries were written with the help of AI, which can produce inaccuracies. You should read the full case before relying on it for legal research purposes.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.