By Chief Justice Douglas Herndon
Change is the law of life. ~ John F. Kennedy
As I write this article, it seems appropriate that Bob Seger’s Travelin’ Man started playing on the radio. It’s been a busy year, especially with the 83rd Session of the Nevada Legislature in full swing, and I’m collecting a lot of Southwest flight miles. I really do enjoy traveling around the state, however, and it offers a constant reminder of how honored I am to serve as Chief Justice, and how thankful I am for the support that Nevada’s legal community continually provides to the judiciary. Your hard work and the integrity you bring to your roles is greatly appreciated.
We’ve made some operational changes at the Supreme Court of Nevada, and I want to update you on some of those while also providing a snapshot of where we are in case filings.
One adjustment we made is to a two-year term for the Chief Justice. Historically, the term was one year, and this change allows for greater continuity in leadership, more time to implement initiatives and foster relationships with stakeholders, statewide and nationally, and more flexibility in overseeing the court’s operations.
Additionally, we have eliminated written split decisions in panel cases. Split panel decisions were relatively rare, but over 70 percent of them involved the filing of petitions for en banc reconsideration—and over 70 percent of those petitions were granted. This high rate of en banc review speaks to our commitment to ensuring that important issues receive appropriate deliberation and that the law is applied fairly and consistently. However, it was not an efficient process. By eliminating written dispositions when a panel is not unanimous, these cases are able to quickly proceed to the en banc court and we should be able, on average, to render final decisions up to six months sooner. We hope this change provides a crucial benefit—saving both attorneys and litigants time and money that would otherwise be spent waiting for the panel writing process to unfold and then navigating the petition process.
Lastly, case filings continue to approach our pre-Covid pandemic levels. Our 90,000th case was recently filed and a total of 2,054 cases were filed with the court in 2024. Of those, 739 were transferred to the Nevada Court of Appeals. During this time, the two courts disposed of a combined total of 2,126 cases.
I am incredibly proud of the work of everyone involved in the appellate courts, including the tremendous individuals in our Central Staff, Court Clerk’s office, and the Administrative Office of the Courts. The changes we’ve made mark an important evolution in how we serve the people of our state, and we will continue to refine and improve our processes to ensure justice is both efficient and fair for all. Thank you for your continued support of our appellate court system.
About the author
Chief Justice Douglas Herndon was elected to the Nevada Supreme Court in 2020, beginning his first term in January 2021. He assumed the role of Chief Justice on January 6, 2025. He previously served as a district judge in the Eighth Judicial District Court from 2005 to 2020.
About the article
This article was originally published in the Communiqué (Apr. 2025), the official publication of the Clark County Bar Association. See https://clarkcountybar.org/about/member-benefits/communique-2025/communique-apr-2025/. The printed magazine was mailed to CCBA members on March 28, 2025.
The articles and advertisements appearing in Communiqué magazine do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the CCBA, the CCBA Publications Committee, the editorial board, or the other authors. All legal and other issues discussed are not for the purpose of answering specific legal questions. Attorneys and others are strongly advised to independently research all issues.
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