Joe Hardy Jr.
Joseph Hardy Jr. is a judge for Department 15 of the Nevada 8th Judicial District Court. He assumed office in 2015. His current term ends on January 4, 2027.
Hardy ran for re-election for the Department 15 judge of the Nevada 8th Judicial District Court. He won in the general election on November 3, 2020.
Hardy completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. Click here to read the survey answers.
Education
Hardy received a bachelor's degree in history, with a minor in Portuguese, from Brigham Young University. He spent two of his undergraduate years in Sao Paulo, Brazil. He earned his J.D. from Brigham Young University J. Reuben Clark Law School.[1]
Career
Before his appointment to the Eighth Judicial District Court, Hardy was a partner at the law firm of Gordon & Rees, LLP in Las Vegas, Nev. He has previously worked at Bullivant Houser Bailey and Beckley Singleton.[2][1]
Awards and associations
- Board member, Nevada Taxicab Authority
- Arbitrator, Better Business Bureau
- Contributing author, Revised Nevada Jury Instructions
- Volunteer, Boy Scouts of America
- Chair, J. Reuben Clark Law Society - Las Vegas chapter[1]
Elections
2020
See also: Municipal elections in Clark County, Nevada (2020)
General election
General election for Nevada 8th Judicial District Court Department 15
Incumbent Joseph Hardy Jr. won election in the general election for Nevada 8th Judicial District Court Department 15 on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Joseph Hardy Jr. (Nonpartisan)  | 100.0 | 672,903 |
| Total votes: 672,903 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Nonpartisan primary election
Nonpartisan primary for Nevada 8th Judicial District Court Department 15
Incumbent Joseph Hardy Jr. defeated Tegan Christine Machnich and Adam Breeden in the primary for Nevada 8th Judicial District Court Department 15 on June 9, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Joseph Hardy Jr. (Nonpartisan) | 57.0 | 158,857 |
 | Tegan Christine Machnich (Nonpartisan) | 31.2 | 87,065 | |
 | Adam Breeden (Nonpartisan) | 11.8 | 32,837 | |
| Total votes: 278,759 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Endorsements
To view Hardy's endorsements in the 2020 election, please click here.
2016
Nevada held general elections for local judicial offices on November 8, 2016. A primary election took place on June 14, 2016.[3] Incumbent Joe Hardy Jr. defeated Bruce Gale in the Nevada Judicial District 8 general election for Department 15.[4]
| Nevada Judicial District 8 (Department 15), General Election, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Joe Hardy Jr. Incumbent |
60.31% | 359,293 |
| Bruce Gale | 39.69% | 236,458 |
| Total Votes | 595,751 | |
| Source: Silver State Election Night Results 2016, "Judicial," accessed January 18, 2016 | ||
2014
See also: Nevada judicial elections, 2014
Hardy ran for election to the Eighth Judicial District Court.
Primary: He was successful in the primary on June 10, 2014, receiving 33.1 percent of the vote. He competed against Jim Crockett, Anthony Ashby and Tony Liker.
General: He was defeated in the general election on November 4, 2014, after receiving 46.8 percent of the vote. He competed against Jim Crockett.
[5][6]
Selection method
- See also: Nonpartisan election of judges
The 72 judges of the Nevada District Courts are elected to six-year terms in nonpartisan elections. To serve additional terms, judges must run for re-election.[7]
Each district court selects its chief judge to a two-year term by peer vote. Not every district court is required to select a chief judge; only in districts with populations over 100,000 are the courts required to choose one.[7]
Qualifications
To serve on the Nevada District Courts, a judge must be:[7]
- a qualified elector;
- a state resident for two years;
- a district resident;
- at least 25 years old;
- licensed and admitted to practice law in Nevada; and
- a licensed attorney for 15 years with at least two years in Nevada.
Campaign themes
2020
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Joseph Hardy Jr. completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Hardy's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
| Collapse all
I believe in public service and the rule of law. As a former partner in a top-100 national law firm, I gave up a successful private practice to do my small part in bettering our community.
In early 2015, I was one of 25 applicants for two vacant district court seats. After an extremely thorough vetting process, I was selected as a finalist in both seats by the Nevada Judicial Selection Commission and was then appointed by Governor Sandoval to be the judge in Department 15. In 2016, my broad community support was evidenced in a 20-point retention campaign victory.
I have served as a business court judge and am currently the chair of our local rules committee. In a recent survey, practicing attorneys overwhelmingly recommended that I be retained. I have presided over dozens of civil and criminal trials. My strong work ethic, even temperament, and thorough knowledge of the law serve me well as a judge.
Please visit www.JudgeJoeHardy.com to to learn more about my qualifications, endorsements, and community support. I thoroughly enjoy serving our community and humbly ask for support in my re-election campaign.
- I believe in treating all those who come before me, whether as litigants, defendants, victims, witnesses, or attorneys, fairly and equally under the law.
- Justice delayed is justice denied.
- I believe in public service and in giving back to the community that has given so much to me and my family.
In the Nevada state court system, I was privileged to appear before several district court judges in the Eighth Judicial District Court (Clark County) who later became Nevada Supreme Court justices. I remember attending a CLE years ago where several of those justices were the featured speakers. After the program ended I had the opportunity to talk to several of them. I told them although I was happy they were now supreme court justices, I missed having them as district judges.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
2016
Hardy Jr. participated in Ballotpedia's 2016 survey of local judicial candidates. The following sections display his responses to the survey questions. When asked what non-judicial legal experience qualifies him to be a judge, the candidate made the following statement:
| “ | I was appointed by Governor Brian Sandoval in April 2015. The appointment came only after a rigorous screening process in which I completed a lengthy application, received numerous letters of recommendation from prominent attorneys and members of the community, was interviewed at length by the Nevada Judicial Selection Commission, and then interviewed by Governor Brian Sandoval.[8][9] | ” |
When asked why he was running for this particular court seat, the candidate made the following statement:
| “ | I am the incumbent judge and absolutely love my job. I enjoy serving our community as a district court judge.[8][9] | ” |
When asked to identify one judge, past or present, who he admires, the candidate made the following statement:
| “ | United States District Court Judge, District of Nevada, Lloyd D. George. I did a summer externship for him while in law school. He inspired me to become a judge.[8][9] | ” |
When asked about his primary concern regarding today's judicial system in his state, the candidate made the following statement:
| “ | The public's general lack of knowledge about the legal system and its judges.[8][9] | ” |
Endorsements
2016
Hardy Jr. received the following endorsements in 2016:
- Las Vegas Metro Police Protective Association
- Nevada Veterans Association
- Nevada Association of Public Safety Officers
- Nevada State AFL-CIO
- Nevada Association of Public Safety Officers
- Clark County Prosecutors Association[8]
See also
2020 Elections
External links
|
Candidate Nevada 8th Judicial District Court Department 15 |
Personal |
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Joe Hardy, Jr. for District Court Judge, "Joe Hardy Bio," archived August 12, 2014
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedappt - ↑ Nevada Secretary of State, "Important 2016 Candidate Dates," accessed December 7, 2015
- ↑ Clark County, Nevada, "Candidate Filing," accessed January 19, 2016
- ↑ Clark County Nevada, "Election: Candidate Filing in Clark County," accessed February 13, 2014 Select "Election Year: 2014"
- ↑ Silver State Election Night Results, "2014 Primary Election Results - Judicial," accessed June 11, 2014
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 American Judicature Society, "Methods of Judicial Selection: Nevada," archived October 3, 2014
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 Ballotpedia's local judicial candidate survey, 2016, "Joe Hardy Jr.'s Responses," March 2, 2016
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
Federal courts:
Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: District of Nevada • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: District of Nevada
State courts:
Nevada Supreme Court • Nevada Court of Appeals • Nevada District Courts • Nevada Justice Courts • Nevada Municipal Courts • Clark County Family Court, Nevada
State resources:
Courts in Nevada • Nevada judicial elections • Judicial selection in Nevada
