Are Online Waivers Legal in Nevada?

Nevada treats a release as a valid contract, and its courts have recognized that a signed agreement to accept the risks of an activity can bar a negligence claim. They also read these agreements strictly. This guide is for Nevada tour operators, off-road and powersports rentals, ski areas, climbing gyms, fitness clubs, shooting ranges, youth leagues and event producers. It covers e-signatures, the Nevada cases on releases (including recreation cases on a free-fall simulator, horseback riding and a gym), youth sports forms, and what is still unsettled.

This guide is general information about Nevada law, with links to the statutes and cases, so you and your attorney can look into anything that applies to your business.

Waiver Law in Nevada at a Glance

Are Electronic Signatures Legal in Nevada?

Yes. NRS 719.240 says a record or signature "may not be denied legal effect or enforceability solely because it is in electronic form," a contract may not be denied effect because an electronic record was used to form it, and an electronic signature satisfies a law requiring a signature. The federal ESIGN Act (15 U.S.C. 7001) sets the same rule nationally. A waiver signed on a phone, computer or tablet counts as signed.

Are Liability Waivers Enforceable in Nevada?

The General Rule

In Miller v. A & R Joint Venture, 97 Nev. 580, 636 P.2d 277 (1981), a lease case, the Nevada Supreme Court said an exculpatory clause "is generally regarded as a valid exercise of the freedom of contract" and affirmed summary judgment for the landlord. In Agricultural Aviation Engineering Co. v. Board of Clark County Commissioners, 106 Nev. 396, 794 P.2d 710 (1990), also a lease case, it reversed a summary judgment because the clause was ambiguous, and set strict reading rules: these contracts "must be construed strictly since they are not favorite of the law," must "spell out the intention of the party with the greatest particularity," show the intent to release "beyond doubt by express stipulation" with no inference from "words of general import," and are construed "with every intendment against the party who seeks immunity."

Recreation Cases

• Express assumption of risk survives. In Mizushima v. Sunset Ranch, Inc., 103 Nev. 259, 737 P.2d 1158 (1987), a rider was thrown from a rental horse at Lake Tahoe. The court held that express assumption of risk remains a defense under Nevada's comparative negligence system, because it "stems from a contractual undertaking that expressly relieves a putative defendant from any duty of care to the injured party." The stable's sign-up sheet failed that test: "there was no indication on the form" that riders were "consenting to assume the risk of injury caused by Sunset's own negligence."
• The signer's understanding matters. In Renaud v. 200 Convention Center Ltd., 102 Nev. 500, 728 P.2d 445 (1986), a customer was hurt on a free-fall simulator after signing a release that "purported to exculpate" the business of liability for negligence. The court reversed summary judgment for the business because she denied appreciating the risks, and "actual knowledge of the risks assumed" was for the fact finder. It said courts should consider "the nature and extent of the injuries, the haste or lack thereof with which the release was obtained, and the understandings and expectations of the parties at the time of signing."
• A gym release enforced. In Moffitt v. 24 Hour Fitness USA, Inc., No. 2:12-cv-00469 (D. Nev. Mar. 14, 2013), a member slipped in a gym steam room. As summarized in the State Bar of Nevada's Nevada Lawyer, the federal court applied Agricultural Aviation and upheld the membership agreement because it contained an express, unambiguous clause that identified the risk of injury and stated the member assumed the risk of injury caused by the gym's negligence.

The same article notes that the Nevada Supreme Court has never considered a fitness center release in a published opinion. Federal decisions don't bind Nevada state courts, so Moffitt shows how one court applied Nevada law rather than settling it.

Water Activities

Activities on navigable waters can fall under federal maritime law instead of Nevada law. In Cobb v. Aramark Sports and Entertainment Services, LLC (D. Nev. 2013), a parasailer hurt on Lake Tahoe had signed a release naming negligence. The court applied admiralty law and enforced it as clear and unambiguous, consistent with public policy, and not an adhesion contract, since parasailing is not an essential service.

Gross Negligence and Intentional Harm

We found no Nevada appellate decision deciding whether a pre-injury release can cover gross negligence, recklessness or intentional harm. The cases above all concern negligence claims, so they don't answer that question.

Waivers for Minors in Nevada

We found no Nevada statute or appellate decision on whether a parent can release a child's own injury claim before it happens. A parent's signature still records the parent's permission, the risks and rules they were told about, and the child's medical and emergency information, and for youth sports it can carry the head injury acknowledgment Nevada requires.

Nevada Activity Laws

• Skier and Snowboarder Safety Act (NRS 455A.010 to 455A.190): sets duties for skiers and snowboarders, sign requirements at lifts and on trails, and says an operator is not liable to a skier who knowingly enters an area not designated for skiing or outside the area boundary. Operators must still "take reasonable steps to minimize dangers and conditions within the operator's control" (NRS 455A.160).
• Youth sports head injuries (NRS 455A.200): organizations that sanction or sponsor competitive youth sports must adopt a concussion policy and, before a youth participates and every year after, have the youth (if capable) and a parent or guardian sign a statement acknowledging the head injury risks and the policy. If you run a league, tournament or club, this is a signed form the law requires, separate from any waiver.

More Than a Release

Even where a release's reach is debated, a signed Nevada agreement does real work:

• A record of what each guest knew. Renaud turned on whether the guest actually understood the risks, and Mizushima on what the form said. A signed description of your activity's specific risks, given in time to read it, is evidence of what the guest was told. How much it matters depends on the facts.
• Required youth sports acknowledgments. NRS 455A.200 requires a signed head injury statement from each youth and parent, every year.
• Rules and equipment. Guests agree to your rules, age and ability limits, and responsibility for rental equipment in writing.
• Medical information and consent. Health conditions, emergency contacts, parent permission and photo consent, collected before the activity.

Points to Raise With Your Attorney

WaiverFile doesn't draft waivers, and the wording of your agreement is a job for you and your attorney. Based on the cases above, these are points worth raising with a Nevada attorney:

• Whether the release states expressly that it covers the business's own negligence. Agricultural Aviation rejects inference from general words, and the Mizushima court faulted a sign-up sheet that didn't mention the stable's negligence.
• How the specific risks of your activity are described. The Moffitt court relied on a clause that identified the risk of injury.
• When and how guests sign. Renaud listed the haste with which the release was obtained among the circumstances a court considers.
• For water activities, whether federal maritime law applies, as it did in Cobb.
• For youth programs, the NRS 455A.200 acknowledgment and how to handle minors given the open question.

How WaiverFile Helps Nevada Businesses

Once your agreement is written, WaiverFile makes it easy for every guest to sign it and keeps a complete, easy-to-find record of each one:

• Signed ahead, not in a rush. Guests sign from their own phone or computer by email, text, QR code or your website, or as part of online booking, with each guest's status shown at check-in. Tablet kiosks work offline in the Venue app.
• Your agreement, laid out your way. Add the text you and your attorney prepared and use the editor's formatting options (bold, capitals, font size) to lay it out as written.
• Acknowledgments where you want them. Initial boxes inside the agreement text and required checkboxes for the risks, rules and clauses you choose, so each one has its own acknowledgment.
• Youth sports forms. Set up your head injury acknowledgment as its own form. A parent signs for themselves and their children on one form, adding each child by name and date of birth, and minors are flagged at check-in.
• Medical questions. Required questions collect health conditions and emergency contacts. HIPAA features add extra protection for health information.
• A record of each signature. Each signed form stores the signature, the answers, and the date and time, plus the IP address and device for online signing. Add a photo of each signer or their ID, offer the form in multiple languages, and email guests a copy. Search any waiver in seconds, or download them in bulk as a ZIP file for any date range.

Start with one of our free waiver templates, review it with your attorney, and set up a free account to start collecting signatures.

Sources and Further Reading

• NRS Chapter 719 (Nevada UETA), including NRS 719.240
• Federal ESIGN Act, 15 U.S.C. 7001
• Miller v. A & R Joint Venture, 97 Nev. 580, 636 P.2d 277 (1981)
• Agricultural Aviation Engineering Co. v. Board of Clark County Commissioners, 106 Nev. 396, 794 P.2d 710 (1990)
• Renaud v. 200 Convention Center Ltd., 102 Nev. 500, 728 P.2d 445 (1986)
• Mizushima v. Sunset Ranch, Inc., 103 Nev. 259, 737 P.2d 1158 (1987)
• Nevada Lawyer (State Bar of Nevada), "The Enforceability of Fitness Club Waivers," August 2018 (discussing Moffitt v. 24 Hour Fitness, D. Nev. 2013)
• Cobb v. Aramark Sports and Entertainment Services, LLC, No. 3:11-cv-0840 (D. Nev. Mar. 18, 2013)
• NRS Chapter 455A (Skier and Snowboarder Safety Act; youth sports head injuries)

Published November 4, 2026