Department XXVIII

Courtroom Protocol

No weapons are allowed. There is no eating, drinking, smoking or chewing gum in any courtroom.

Proper courtroom attire is required. No shorts or tank tops are allowed in the courtroom, shoes are required. T-shirts, which show offensive slogans or pictures, are not allowed. Hats should be removed before entering the courtroom.

While in the courtroom, sit quietly when court is in session. Do not talk or whisper. The court proceedings are being recorded by a court recorder and noise can interfere with the preparation of this important record.

All beepers, cellular telephones, and electronic devices must be turned off before entering the courtroom. Avoid reading newspapers, or books in the courtrooms, particularly if your use of such material may be a distraction to others.

Attorneys are expected to maintain the highest ethical standards at all times, and to strictly adhere to the opportunities, requirements, limitations, and deadlines set by the judge. All counsel are to be punctual for all conferences, hearings and trials. They are to be civil to one another as well as to all parties, witnesses, and court personnel - whether in front of a jury or the court.

Current Assignment

• Effective July 2, 2018, Department 28 is assigned a split docket of criminal and civil cases.

Motion Calendar Schedule

• Department 28 hears Criminal Court matters on Mondays and Wednesdays at 10:00 a.m.
• Department 28 Civil Court matters are scheduled on the Thursday Chambers Calendars without oral argument. They must be fully briefed and thereafter a decision will be issued via minute order with prevailing counsel being directed to prepare a written Order in accordance with E.D.C.R. 7.21. Matters scheduled for the Hearing Calendar must receive prior approval by the Judicial Executive Assistant and/or the Judicial Law Clerk and will be scheduled for a Tuesday at 10:00 a.m. and include Prove Ups, Preliminary Injunctions, TROs, Show Cause Hearings and certain Petitions only. Scheduling for the Hearing Calendar is coordinated through Master Calendar in the Clerk’s Office.
• Discovery Conferences are conducted on Tuesdays at 10:00 a.m. unless otherwise scheduled by the Court.

Other regularly scheduled court sessions

• None

Discovery Commissioner Assigned

• Commissioner Jay Young.

Court Reporter or a Court Recorder for its Official Record

• Department 28 uses a Court Recorder and all matters are recorded.  Counsel can request a transcript of the proceedings by completing a Transcript Order Form (see above) and faxing it to Chambers at (702)366-1407.  Please also e-mail the Form to the Court Recorder at ChappellJ@ClarkCountyCourts.us. 

Telephonic Appearance Request

• Department 28 utilizes Zoom Video Conferencing for all audio visual appearances for both Civil and Criminal matters.  There is no cost to the parties.  Please contact Department 28 for the Meeting ID for the applicable hearing. 
• If any party wishes to appear by audio/visual means, they will be required to file the appropriate notice with the court prior to their scheduled hearing, pursuant to Administrative Order 22-07, Nevada Supreme Court Rule Part IX-B(A), and Nevada Supreme Court Rule Nevada Supreme Court Rule Part IX-B(B).

Default Judgment Prove-Ups

• A prove up hearing is required if special circumstances exist, the damages exceed $50,000.00 and/or if the claim involves real property.  Should a prove up be required, counsel are to e-file a request through Master Calendar who will then contact Department 28 for a hearing date.  The matter will then need to be noticed for hearing to include the Blue Jeans audio visual link.  Witnesses will be permitted to appear audio visually; however, they must have a court-approved notary and/or official present on their end to swear them in. 

Submission of Orders

• Proposed orders must be submitted in PDF format to DC28Inbox@ClarkCountyCourts.us.  Only one order can be attached per e-mail and must also include e-mail correspondence from counsel approving the use of their electronic signature.  The e-mail subject line must contain the case number, filing event code and the name of the document (i.e., “A-20-123456-C, OGM, Order Granting Motion To Withdraw As Counsel”). 
• Department 28 requires proposed orders to be submitted to chambers within ten (10) days of notification of the ruling, pursuant to EDCR 7.21. Prevailing Counsel is required to provide a draft to opposing counsel(s), allowing for a reasonable opportunity for review and comment. Non-drafting counsel is required to sign the order prior to submission. Disputes may be resolved by submission to Chambers of competing orders, with an explanatory letter.
• If you are submitting an Amended Order, please include a brief cover letter indicating why the amendments are necessary.

Jury Selection

• Department 28 uses the “Arizona Method” of jury selection, requiring voir dire to be directed toward the minimum number of jurors necessary to be qualified rather than the entire venire. After initial “hardship” questioning by the Court, and any excusals as a result thereof, prospective jurors are seated in the jury box in the order of their badge numbers. Department 28 does not generally impose time limits on voir dire, but notes each case is different and some cases require more extensive voir dire than others. In accordance with EDCR 7.70, counsel shall submit proposed voir dire questions to the Court, in chambers, not later than one (1) judicial day prior to the day trial begins. The Court conducts a thorough general canvas, followed by supplemental questions by the attorneys one time around the panel, in order, first the plaintiff’s counsel, then defense counsel.
• Challenges for cause must be made outside the presence of the prospective jury. The number of peremptory challenges is determined by statute, specifically NRS 16.040, NRS 175.041, NRS 175.051 and NRS 175.061, and is exercised after 24 prospective jurors in civil cases or 32 prospective jurors in criminal cases are qualified. All plaintiffs share peremptory challenges and all defendants share peremptory challenges. The lawyers take turns exercising peremptory challenges in private by passing back and forth the list of qualified jurors, with plaintiff exercising one, then defendant, then back to plaintiff and so on. Alternates are chosen randomly out of a container at the conclusion of trial and prior to the commencement of deliberations unless the lawyers request otherwise.
• Department 28 requires all requests for jury questionnaires to be done by motion and must be filed and heard at least six (6) weeks in advance of the trial date. The questionnaire must be submitted to the Court in final form for signature no less than five (5) weeks prior to the commencement of trial. Once signed, the questionnaire is to be immediately delivered to the Jury Commissioner for processing.

Pro Bono

• If counsel are pro bono, they are to check in with the courtroom clerk in the morning prior to calendar and their case will be called first.

Disclosure of Personal Information

• NRS 239B.030 prohibits a person from including personal information on any document that is recorded, filed, or otherwise submitted to the Court. "Personal information" means a person's first name or first initial and last name in combination with any of the following: social security number; driver's license number; or account number, credit card number, or debit card number, in combination with any required security code, access code, or password that would permit access to the person's financial account. NRS 603A.040.
• Should a litigant inadvertently file a document that discloses "personal information," the litigant must file a motion to seal or redact pursuant to the Nevada Rules for Sealing and Redacting Court Records (SRCR). Sealing or redacting is also generally justified when the privacy or safety interests outweigh the public interest in open court records such as when the sealing or redacting includes: "restricted personal information" as defined by SRCR 2(6), medical records, mental health records, tax records, or is permitted or required to be sealed or redacted by federal or state law. See SRCR 3(4).

Minor's Compromises

• Department 28 requests that medical records only be submitted to Chambers. NRS 41.200(3) does not require that medical records be filed. If medical records are filed, Department 28 requires the Petitioner to file a motion to redact pursuant to Nevada Rules for Sealing and Redacting Court Records (SRCR) 3. If "restricted personal information" as defined by SRCR 2(6) is filed, the Petitioner must file a motion to redact pursuant to SRCR 3 and EDCR 2.13.

Taking Matters Off Calendar / Settlement Documents:

• If there is a pending hearing in a case, and a party has submitted settlement documents, or any other document/Order that would take that pending hearing off calendar and/or close the case, the parties are required to contact the department at-least twenty-four (24) hours prior to the pending hearing that they believe should be taken off calendar, to ensure that said document has been received and that the hearing has been taken off calendar. If a party feels that a matter should be taken off calendar, but they fail to follow-up, and then fail to appear at said hearing, sanctions will issue.
• If a case has settled, and the parties fail to notify the department in writing, and then fail to appear at any pending hearings, sanctions will issue.
• ALL calendars (Civil and Criminal) are finalized at 11:00 AM the day prior to the calendar. If a party is submitting a document to take a case off calendar one day prior to the hearing, that document must be submitted at least one hour prior to 11:00 AM, and the party must call the department immediately to make it aware of the document. If a document is submitted after the final calendar runs at 11:00 AM, or if the party fails to make the department aware of the document prior to 11:00 AM, then the matter will remain on calendar, and the parties will be required to appear and make representations. If there are special circumstances that prevent a party from filing a document taking a case off calendar prior to the calendar being finalized at 11:00 AM, please reach out to the department for instruction.