Guinn names LV woman to judgeship

Tuesday, July 20, 2004 | 10:50 a.m.

SUN CAPITAL BUREAU

CARSON CITY -- Gov. Kenny Guinn today picked Las Vegas lawyer Elizabeth Goff Gonzalez to succeed Michael J. Douglas as district judge in Clark County.

Douglas was elevated to the Nevada Supreme Court at the beginning of May.

Guinn, in announcing the appointment, said Goff Gonzales "has established a strong reputation in the state's legal community as a prepared, focused and fair trial lawyer."

Goff Gonzales said she intends to take the bench sometime next week. She said she has been preparing her clients and her partners for her departure from private practice.

Her practice, said Goff Gonzales, has focused on real estate and personal injury defense. She said she has handled only a few criminal cases in her nearly 20 years of practice.

The governor chose her from the three lawyers nominated by the state Commission on Judicial Selection. The other two were Michael Davidson of Las Vegas and Timothy C. Williams of Henderson.

If she wants to remain on the bench, Goff Gonzales must run for the position in November. Davidson and Williams have filed to run for the office. Also filing are Bruce Gale and Robert Kurth Jr. and Mathew Harter for the judgeship in Department 11.

Goff Gonzales, 43, an attorney since 1986, is a member of the Association of Defense Trial Attorneys and is president of the board of Clark County Legal Services.

She is a past member of the Nevada Supreme Court Commission on Jury Improvement and she received the State Bar of Nevada's Access to Justice Committee's Attorney of the Year Award in 2003.

She has served as a mentor in the attorney-law student mentor program at the UNLV William S. Boyd School of Law.

She received her Bachelor of Arts degree in 1982 and her law degree in 1985, both from the University of Florida.