August's Scoop

August 24th Happy Hour at 1864 Tavern
Please join us on Thursday, August 24th at 5:30 p.m. at 1864 Tavern, located at 290 California Avenue, for a mixer and networking event. Reconnect with old friends and make new friends while enjoying one of their craft cocktails. Light refreshments will be provided.  We look forward to seeing you there!  No RSVP necessary.

​Save the Date: An Evening With the Nevada Supreme Court on September 7th, 2017
We are excited to announce that on Thursday, September 7th, NNWLA will co-host an event with the Appellate Litigation Section of the State Bar of Nevada for a discussion with the Supreme Court of Nevada Justices.  This event is a great opportunity to meet our Nevada Supreme Court Justices.  Hors d’oeuvres will be served at 5:15 p.m.  A panel discussion with the Justices will begin at 6:00 p.m.  The event will be held at the Supreme Court, located at 201 S. Carson Street, Carson City.  1 hour CLE credit is pending approval.  

This is always one of our most popular events.  Early RSVPs are requested to ensure that we can accommodate as many people as possible.  If you register by Thursday, August 31st at noon, the cost of the event is $25.  Registration after August 31st, space permitting, is $30. Advanced registration is available using the Paypal link on our Events page (http://www.nnwla.com/events.html).  To pay by check, please RSVP to nnwla.rsvp@gmail.com and send your check to Jenna Garcia, P.O. Box 40953, Reno, NV 89504.
 
If you are interested in sending questions for us to ask the Justices, please email them to nnwla.rsvp@gmail.com by Thursday, August 31st.  We hope to see you on September 7th for the event!
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Equal Rights Amendment : Senate Joint Resolution 2
At our June Legislative Luncheon Event, there was significant discussion regarding the Equal Rights Amendment (hereinafter “ERA”).  As such, NNWLA wanted to provide additional information regarding the ERA to our members.

On March 20, 2017, Nevada made headlines across the nation when our Legislature ratified the ERA.   This occurred exactly 45 years after the United States Congress passed the Equal Rights Amendment to the United States Constitution.  Senator Pat Spearman was the lead sponsor of Senate Joint Resolution (“S.J.R.”) 2, the ERA resolution.  Nevada is now the 36th state to ratify the amendment.  However, a few of those states have rescinded their ratification.

The Nevada Legislature has voted on the ERA in several previous legislative sessions.  The ERA failed in 1973, 1975, 1977, 1978, and 2015.

The ERA was a highly debated topic this year.  Constituents from all over Nevada came to the hearings to speak in favor and against S.J.R. 2.  This included individuals who had spoken at the previous legislative hearings regarding the ERA.  See MINUTES OF THE SENATE COMMITTEE ON LEGISLATIVE OPERATIONS AND ELECTIONS, Seventy-ninth Session (Feb. 20, 2017).  Both Senator Heidi Gansert and the Senate Committee on Legislative Operations and Elections Chair Nicole Cannizzaro commented about the amount of passion that they heard from both positions regarding the ERA.  See MINUTES OF THE SENATE COMMITTEE ON LEGISLATIVE OPERATIONS AND ELECTIONS, Seventy-Ninth Session, p. 2, (Feb. 22, 2017).

Those in favor of the ERA argued that having equal rights is critically important to women.  When discussing the bill, Senator Spearman argued the significant need to ensure that all men and women are treated equally.  See MINUTES OF THE SENATE COMMITTEE ON LEGISLATIVE OPERATIONS AND ELECTIONS, Seventy-ninth Session, p. 3-6 (Feb. 20, 2017).  She stated: “[w]hen it comes to the ratification of the ERA we all must persist. It is time to even the playing field for women.”  Id.

Those opposing S.J.R. 2 discussed their concern for the consequences that the ERA would have on abortion rights, custody issues, and the exemption from selective service. Others argued that it was too late to ratify, since the ratification deadline set by Congress expired in 1982.  As such, they argued that ratification would just be a symbolic gesture - or "political theatrics."  See Seth A. Richardson, Equal Rights Amendment passes Nevada Assembly; Senate likely to concur, RGJ, March 20, 2017, updated March 22, 2017, http://www.rgj.com/story/news/politics/2017/03/20/equal-rights-amendment-passes-nevada-assembly-senate-likely-concur/99422284/.

Assemblyman Ira Hansen argued that “ratifying the ERA will make Nevada a laughingstock because this has not been an issue since 1982. It is not going to become part of the U.S. Constitution. . .  While I am certainly in favor of equality, this is not the way to go about it.”  MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF THE ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON LEGISLATIVE OPERATIONS AND ELECTIONS, Seventy-Ninth Session, p. 8 (March 14, 2017).

The votes for ERA was split primarily along political party lines, with the Democrats in favor of ratification.  Senator Heidi Gansert and Assemblywoman Jill Tolles, both of Reno, were the only Republicans to vote in favor of the ERA.  It is interesting to note, that this year, there were significantly more women Legislators.  Approximately 40 percent of the Legislatures at this past Legislative Session are female.

Below are some additional resources discussing the ERA:
https://www.leg.state.nv.us/App/NELIS/REL/79th2017/Bill/4912/Overview; 
http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2017/03/21/520962541/nevada-on-cusp-of-ratifying-equal-rights-amendment-35-years-after-deadline; 
www.rgj.com/story/news/politics/2017/03/20/equal-rights-amendment-passes-nevada-assembly-senate-likely-concur/99422284/;
https://www.reviewjournal.com/news/politics-and-government/nevada/nevada-legislature-on-cusp-of-historic-vote-on-equal-rights-amendment/; 
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2017/03/22/nevada-oks-era-bill-equality-period/99514360/; 
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2017/03/04/nevada-is-about-to-be-the-first-state-in-more-than-three-decades-to-ratify-the-equal-rights-amendemt/?utm_term=.402e9bc2beb5.

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Photo of Senator Spearman.  Photo credit: Las Vegas Review-Journal, https://www.reviewjournal.com/news/politics-and-government/nevada/nevada-legislature-on-cusp-of-historic-vote-on-equal-rights-amendment/.

Welcome to Our New Judicial Officers
The Second Judicial District Court will have two new judicial officers.  Kathleen Draklich was appointed by Governor Sandoval to serve as the Department 1 Judge.  Additionally, Aimee Banales was recently selected to serve as a Temporary Protection Order Court Master. Please join NNWLA in congratulating the new judicial officers!

Employment Opportunity
The State Bar of Nevada is currently accepting applications for Assistant Bar Counsel. This is a full-time, exempt position with the Office of Bar Counsel. See the complete job description and application on their website.  Qualified applicants may submit their resume, a writing sample and a completed application for consideration to Shelley Young, at hrobc@nvbar.org.

​Reno Has Heart
The Northern Nevada Heart & Stroke Walk/5K Run will take place this year on Sunday, September 17, 2017 at Wingfield Park.  This event benefits the American Heart Association and American Stroke Association.  If you are interested in participating, you can register online at: NevadaHeartWalk.com.

​Member Corner
If you have new contact information, exciting news to share, a job opportunity, an organization seeking volunteers, or information about an event members would be interested in, please let the NNWLA Board know. Please send your submissions to Kendra Bertschy at kbertschy@washoecounty.us.

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​Membership Renewal
​Just a friendly reminder to all members to pay your 2017 NNWLA membership dues if you haven’t yet done so this year. Members not only get special pricing on events, but coming soon, NNWLA is working on setting up a webpage where members can look to get and give referrals.  Please click on this link to be directed to our membership page.