Judicial Philosophy
A judge's job is narrow but consequential. Apply the law fairly. Decide cases promptly. Treat everyone in the courtroom with dignity. Explain the reasoning. The rest is detail.
The Role of a Judge
A district court judge is not a legislator, an advocate, or a policymaker. The judge's role is to interpret the law as it exists — the constitutions of the United States and Nevada, statutes enacted by the Legislature, and binding precedent from the Nevada Supreme Court and the United States Supreme Court — and to apply that law to the facts of the case in front of the court.
Judicial restraint is not weakness. It is the foundation of public confidence in the courts. Litigants accept rulings they disagree with when they trust that the judge decided on the law and the evidence, not personal preference. That is the standard I will hold myself to in Department 26.
What Litigants Deserve
Every person who appears in Department 26 — represented or self-represented, plaintiff or defendant, civil litigant or criminal accused — is entitled to three things from the court.
A timely decision. Justice delayed is justice diminished. Motions taken under advisement should be decided promptly. Trials should be scheduled and held, not perpetually continued. The court's docket is a public resource, and the court owes the parties and the public diligent management of it.
A reasoned explanation. When a case is decided, the parties are entitled to understand why. Written decisions — even short ones — discipline the judge's thinking, give the losing party a basis to evaluate appeal, and create a record the public can examine. A ruling without reasoning erodes confidence in the courts.
Respectful treatment. A courtroom is not a place for sarcasm, condescension, or impatience from the bench. Litigants are often appearing on the worst day of their lives. Lawyers are doing difficult work under pressure. Jurors are giving their time. The judge sets the tone, and the tone should be civil.
Civil Cases and the Cost of Delay
Before I became a lawyer, I owned and operated a real estate brokerage and mortgage lending firm. I learned what unresolved litigation does to a small business — the legal fees, the diverted attention, the deals that fall through while the case sits. Civil litigants do not have unlimited patience or unlimited resources. The court that respects their interests is the court that runs a disciplined docket: firm scheduling orders, meaningful pretrial conferences, prompt rulings on dispositive motions, and a willingness to use settlement conferences and alternative dispute resolution where they fit the dispute.
Efficient case management is not corner-cutting. It is the difference between a docket that serves the public and a docket that buries it.
Criminal Cases
The presumption of innocence and the requirement that the State prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt are not formalities. They are the structural protections that distinguish our system from the alternative. As the former elected District Attorney for Lincoln County, I prosecuted criminal cases from misdemeanors through serious felonies. That experience taught me what fair charging, fair plea practice, and fair sentencing look like — and what they look like when they are absent.
A judge in a criminal case owes the same respect to the accused, the victim, the witnesses, and the jury. Sentencing requires individualized judgment within statutory limits, attention to the facts of the case and the person before the court, and an honest accounting of the public's interest in safety, accountability, and proportionality.
Self-Represented Litigants
A growing portion of the district court's civil docket involves parties without counsel. They are entitled to a fair hearing, but the court cannot be their advocate. The right balance — clear procedural instructions, patience with unfamiliar formalities, and strict neutrality on the merits — requires judgment and care. The court's task is to make the process navigable without taking sides.
The Courtroom
Lawyers practicing before the court are entitled to know the rules and to see them enforced consistently. Deadlines mean deadlines. Page limits mean page limits. Local rules and standing orders exist for a reason, and selective enforcement breeds cynicism in the bar.
Jurors are owed a court that respects their time. Trials should start when scheduled. Breaks should be taken when promised. Instructions should be clear and given in plain English. Service on a Clark County jury is a civic obligation, and a well-run trial honors the people who fulfill it.
Integrity
The Nevada Code of Judicial Conduct is the floor, not the ceiling. Recusal when required. No prejudgment of cases. No ex parte communications. No use of the office or its prestige to advance personal or political interests. These rules are familiar to me — I have spent the last several years applying them, along with the Nevada Rules of Professional Conduct, as Chief Bar Counsel for the State Bar of Nevada. I have seen what professional integrity looks like, and I have seen what it looks like when it fails. That experience will inform how I approach the bench.
The judiciary is a position of public trust. I will treat it that way every day I serve.
