Judge Mark Ralph Denton

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

Judge Denton was appointed by Governor Bob Miller on August 19, 1998 to fill a vacancy left on the District Court bench by his resigning predecessor and was sworn in on September 4, 1998.  He was then retained in the general election of November 3, 1998 to complete the remaining four years of his predecessor’s term.  He has been re-elected to six-year terms in 2002, 2008, and 2014. Judge Denton was born in Elko, Nevada and raised in Boulder City, Nevada where he graduated from high school.  He then attended the University of Nevada, Reno (with a year in Paris, France through an affiliate of UNR), followed by attendance at the Georgetown University Law Center in Washington, D.C. where he obtained his J.D. in May of 1976. Judge Denton was commissioned a second lieutenant in 1973 and therafter fulfilled his U.S. Army R.O.T.C. active duty obligation as a first lieutenant (Armor) and reserve duty as a Captain (JAG).  He practiced law for 21 years before assuming the District Court bench, achieving the highly-esteemed “AV” rating with Martindale-Hubbell Legal Directory and a firm listing in that publication’s Bar Register of Preeminent Lawyers in the categories of Civil Trial Practice, General Practice, and Probate, Trusts and Estate Planning. Judge Denton is a charter member of the American College of Business Court Judges and is a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation. Judge Denton is a past president of the Howard D. McKibben American Inn of Court and is currently a member emeritus of the same, having previously been a master/regular. Judge Denton is a Regular Commissioner of the State of Nevada Commission on Judicial Discipline. Judge Denton is currently one of the five Business Court Judges in the Eighth Judicial District.  His calendar is comprised of Business Court cases and regular civil cases.

Source: official court website - retrieved Aug 22, 2026