Judge Joanna S. Kishner

District Judge - Eighth Judicial District Court - Civil/Criminal Division - Department XXXI

The Honorable Joanna S. Kishner is the Judge in Department XXXI of the Eighth Judicial District. Judge Kishner was first elected to the bench in 2010 based on the community- wide support she received. Judge Kishner’s current assignment includes complex Business Court and Construction Defect matters as well as general civil litigation and overflow criminal cases. Judge Kishner is a native to Southern Nevada. She graduated, magna cum laude, with a double major in Political Science and Psychology from Claremont McKenna College and obtained her Juris Doctorate at UCLA School of Law. While at UCLA, she was involved in a variety of activities including being the Managing Editor of the Federal Communications Law Journal; a Judicial Extern for the Honorable Stephen V. Wilson of the United States District Court, Central District of California; and a Homeless Legal Project advocate. Prior to taking the bench, Judge Kishner’s legal career spanned over twenty years amassing an extensive amount of knowledge and experience in a variety of practice areas including her work for Paul Hastings, Janofsky & Walker, Warner Bros., and DLA Piper. She has also served as an Arbitrator, Justice of the Peace Pro Tem, Pro Tem Small Claims Referee, and a Pro Tem Traffic Court Referee. Judge Kishner serves as a member of the state-wide Access to Justice Commission; is a Trustee for the Law Library Board; a member of the Legal Aid of Southern Nevada’s Pro Bono Advisory Council; and is a member of the Boyd Law School’s Public Interest Law Foundation and its Executive Board. Judge Kishner also serves on the State of Nevada’s Standing Committee on Judicial Ethics and serves as a member of the Eighth Judicial District’s Legislative Committee. She is also the past President of the Nevada District Judges Association. Judge Kishner is also a member of the American College of Business Court Judges. She was also formally the Chairperson of the Eighth Judicial District’s Rules Committee. Judge Kishner is also one of the founding judges of a Legal Studies Internship program for area high schools; and previously, was a member of the community-based Boards of both Clark and ATEC High Schools. Judge Kishner is also a graduate of the FBI Citizen’s Academy. Judge Kishner has received multiple recognitions throughout her career. Most notably, she has also been recognized for her pro bono work, including working with disadvantaged children through the Children’s Attorney Project and national pro bono programs, as well as serving on the State and County Bar’s Pro Bono Recruitment Committee; and, in 2016, she was awarded the Justice Nancy Becker Pro Bono Award of Judicial Excellence.

Source: official court website - retrieved Aug 22, 2026