Another bankruptcy judge possible

Single Sign-On: You can use Facebook account to log in to LasVegasSun.com. (We will use your first and last name from your profile.)
Trusted Commenting: Facebook connected users automatically become trusted commenters.

Thursday, Jan. 29, 2004 | 9:53 a.m.

WASHINGTON -- Nevada may get an additional bankruptcy judge should a bill passed by the House Wednesday make its way through the Senate and to the president.

The House passed another bankruptcy reform bill Wednesday that included a new judgeship for Nevada. Congress has approved the new slot before, but it has never made it all the way to the president.

"Nevada's court system is overwhelmed by bankruptcy filings, and the bankruptcy reform legislation which was worked out between the House and Senate will alleviate this great judicial burden," Rep. Jim Gibbons, R-Nev., said.

The Senate still needs to approve the final version of the bill.

Bankruptcy case filings have increased in Nevada from 19,095 filings in 2002 to 20,689 in 2003, and the District of Nevada Bankruptcy Court Report shows Nevada's existing three judges each had 7,481 case filings per judgeship, 48 percent higher than the national median, according to Gibbons' office.