LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — Clark County taxpayers face a likely $12.4 million bill after a judge ruled against the county in the latest legal battle over the defunct Badlands golf course near Queensridge — a fight that has now spanned nearly a decade.
The ruling adds to more than $286 million that City of Las Vegas taxpayers already paid after courts found the city illegally took former landowner Yohan Lowie's property and prevented him from developing it.
WATCH | Badlands ruling adds millions to Clark County taxpayer tab
Attorney Jim Leavitt with the Law Offices of Kermitt L. Waters sued Clark County on Lowie's behalf and won a judgment of more than $8.2 million. In the most recent hearing, the judge found the county's argument "unpersuasive" and ordered taxpayers to also cover Lowie's attorney fees — nearly $680,000.
The judge also ordered the county to pay interest dating back to August 2017, calculated from the date each property tax payment was made. That amount is still being finalized, but is expected to exceed $3.5 million.
Petition for Writ of Mandamus or in the Alternative Prohibition by naree.asherian
The dispute centers on taxes and penalties Lowie continued to be charged on the Badlands property even as courts later ruled that money had been illegally collected and ordered the county to return it.
"It doesn't seem right, it doesn't seem reasonable, it's not logical, it's not legal," Leavitt told 13 Investigates in July, 2025.
Leavitt said the public was actually using the Badlands property as a public park.
"And it's not just taxes, it's fines and penalties that they assessed on top of the taxes?" I asked.
"Absolutely! Which brings up another reason why Clark County's conduct is so egregious here," Leavitt said.
The case is due back in District Court in June to finalize the total bill. Clark County is now attempting to get the Nevada Supreme Court to intervene, arguing it would be forced to claw back money already spent on public services.
The County’s legal fees on this matter are over $100,000 and mounting.
The below statement speaks to the County’s continued legal fight in this case.
"For years, the City of Las Vegas asserted that the legal disputes involving the Badlands parcels were not a result of the jurisdiction “taking” the land from the landowner and refusing to allow development. It was during this time that property taxes were properly levied on the parcels. However, in a new lawsuit against Clark County, the City has admitted to “taking” the land and now argues the property taxes were incorrectly collected as the City was the owner as of August 2, 2017.
The County has filed the attached Petition for Writ of Prohibition to continue to challenge this in court on behalf of the taxpayers in Clark County as the over $8 million in property taxes collected from 2017-2025 on the Badlands parcels were appropriately levied, collect and distributed to several recipients that provide services on behalf of the public.
The recipients include the City of Las Vegas themselves, the Clark County School District, the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD), the State of Nevada, the Las Vegas-Clark County Library District, Clark County Family Court, Indigent Assistance Programs, Clark County, State Cooperative Extension, and the LVMPD 911 Fund.
Clark County recently notified these recipients that the County may be forced to claw back the tax dollars that were allocated and spent to satisfy the erroneous District Court decision. The Court’s new determination about the amount of interest owed back to the plaintiffs further underscores the County’s need for an additional legal remedy with the Nevada Supreme Court through the filing of the writ.
Statute dictates the collection of property taxes. The City’s settlement of its bad actions should not be the financial responsibility of the state and local jurisdictions.
The County will be conducting its own interest calculation and submitting this back to the court."
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