Prominent entertainment lawyer John Mason and Clark County District Judge Ron Parraguirre filed Thursday for the Nevada Supreme Court seat being vacated by Deborah Agosti.
Mason, 57, announced he would run after the Supreme Court, in an opinion by Agosti, ruled the Legislature could set aside the two-thirds majority needed to raise taxes in favor of a constitutional requirement to fund education.
But the race changed dramatically a week ago when Agosti announced she would not run again, citing health problems including a heart condition.
"That certainly changed the playing field," he said. "But six justices signed it. I think the Supreme Court of Nevada has been out of touch with the people of the state."
He said there are "a lot of cases" in which the court hasn't represented the people's wishes but was unable to name one off the top of his head. And he said one of his strong points is that he hasn't been a judge.
"What the people in Nevada need on the court is somebody who doesn't have black robe disease," he said, defining that as a pompous, all-knowing and controlling attitude.
Parraguirre, 44, has been a judge 13 years - first municipal and now district court in Clark County. He said his ratings from lawyers over the years have been consistently well over 90 percent favorable for his conduct and his judicial abilities.
"I'm most cordial. They walk out of my courtroom knowing I've given their case my full attention," he said.
He said he believes a Supreme Court justice benefits from knowing inside and out how the court system works.
"You've got to be able to understand the system, understand the district courts and what the issues are and understand the rural courts and their issues," he said. "We've absolutely got to make the system work better and we're not going to get a lot more resources."
Mason, former head of the Republican Party, has specialized for 33 years in handling the affairs of some of Hollywood and the music industry's biggest entertainers. He admitted he isn't a trial attorney, saying "I am a transaction attorney."
But he said he doesn't see a problem dealing with cases involving criminal law and other areas of civil law.
"This is a court whose job is to read cases and interpret legislative intent and the constitution," he said.
While Mason entered the race criticizing the court's opinion setting aside the two-thirds majority to raise taxes, Parraguirre said he wouldn't give a specific answer to what he would do on any pending case -that issue is now in federal court - because that would violate rules of judicial ethics.
He said he is most interested in the potential for administrative improvements in how Nevada courts work - including expansion of drug courts and other specialty courts which are working well into areas outside Washoe and Clark counties.
Contact Geoff Dornan at gdornan@nevadaappeal.com or 687-8750.
