The courts of Nevada serve the public as an independent and responsible branch of government in one of the fastest growing states in the union that also has a high percentage of its residents in urban areas. Nevada has grown an average of five percent or more every year for more than a decade and is now at more than two million residents, most of whom live in urban areas such as Las Vegas Valley, Reno, Sparks, Carson City, or Elko.

The Nevada court system has three levels: the Supreme Court, the District Court, and courts of limited jurisdiction or the Justice and Municipal Courts. The Supreme Court is the only appellate court in the state and does not have discretionary review, which means the Court must consider all appeals.

The District Courts are general jurisdiction courts. The seventeen counties of the state are divided into nine judicial districts. Some counties, such as Clark (Las Vegas) and Washoe (Reno), are individual judicial districts. In the rural areas, two or three counties are combined into separate judicial district with courts in each county and judges that travel to hear cases.

Each township has a Justice Court and each municipality a Municipal Court. Currently, Nevada has forty-eight Justice Courts and seventeen Municipal Courts.

The Supreme Court is in Carson City on state capitol grounds; however, some justices and staff are in Las Vegas. Cases are heard in Las Vegas as well. The Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) provides administrative support to the Nevada Supreme Court and to the Nevada trial courts. The AOC, with a staff of about thirty professionals, has Administration, Education, Information System, Court Services, and Planning & Analysis Divisions.

AOC projects and programs include recently implemented Court Interpreters Program, new rural courts case management system, continuing judicial education programs for new and experienced judges, Court Improvement Project grants, standardized temporary protection orders, and Uniform System for Judicial Records (statistics).