William B. Terry

Deceased

Bar #1028 - ATTORNEY Deceased

Admitted
10/1/1973
Law school
U.of San Diego

In Memoriam

William B. "Bill" Terry - 1946-08-31 to 2021-01-15

William "Bill" Terry was one of Las Vegas's most prominent criminal defense attorneys, with a legal career that spanned nearly five decades. He earned his law degree from the University of San Diego and was admitted to the State Bar of Nevada in 1973. He began his career as a federal prosecutor before establishing himself as a defense attorney who represented a wide range of clients, including accused murderers, politicians, judges and fellow lawyers.

Over the course of his career, Terry was involved in some of the most high-profile cases in Las Vegas history. He represented defendants connected to the investigation into the death of gaming figure Ted Binion, including Sandy Murphy and Rick Tabish. His other notable matters included the defense of Anthony Carleo in the Bellagio poker-chip robbery, County Commissioner Lynette Boggs on perjury charges, and defendants in the Christopher Prestipino and Matthew Minkler cases.

Beyond his courtroom work, Terry contributed to the profession and the legal community. He served as an alternate judge for the Las Vegas Municipal Court early in his career, and later served as a member and chairman of the State Bar of Nevada's Disciplinary Board. In 1997, he received the Professionalism Award from the Clark County Bar Association. He died on January 15, 2021, at the age of 74.

Longtime Las Vegas attorney William 'Bill' Terry dies (Las Vegas Review-Journal) - Longtime Las Vegas attorney William Terry dead at 74 (KTNV Las Vegas) - Attorney Bill Terry dies at 74 after career of defending noteworthy Las Vegas cases (KLAS 8 News Now)

Discipline history

No discipline on record.

Record last verified Aug 16, 2026

Appellate record

Handled 19 Supreme Court of Nevada / Court of Appeals of Nevada cases on record.

Results in appellate decisions and orders

18% won of 11 decided cases
Won 2Mixed 2Lost 7
Civil cases
0% of 2
Criminal cases
33% of 3
Court-order requests
20% of 5
Other matters
0% of 1
Details by role (challenging vs. defending a ruling)
  • Civil cases - Challenging a ruling: won 0 of 2 (1 mixed)
  • Criminal cases - Challenging a ruling: won 1 of 3
  • Other matters - Requesting a court order: won 0 of 1 (1 mixed)
  • Court-order requests - Challenging a ruling: won 0 of 1
  • Court-order requests - Requesting a court order: won 1 of 3
  • Court-order requests - Defending a ruling: won 0 of 1

Appellate courts uphold far more rulings than they overturn, so lawyers who mostly defend rulings tend to show higher won-shares than lawyers who mostly challenge them. This breakdown lets you compare like with like.

Won means the court ruled the way this side asked. Mixed means the court agreed in part. Cases that were dismissed or have no clear result are listed but not counted. Based on the court's published decisions and unpublished orders; coverage is still being extended.

  • 80212 - IN RE: JUDICIAL DISCIPLINE OF JENNIFER HENRY (Dec 23, 2020)Ruling upheldLost - challenged the ruling case details
  • 79567-COA - CAMACHO (MANUEL) VS. DIST. CT. (STATE) (Oct 22, 2019)Request deniedLost - challenged the ruling case details
  • 78724 - ERRICO (WILLIAM) VS. DIST. CT. (STATE) (May 24, 2019)Request deniedLost - sought the court order case details
  • 77551 - ANDRESS-TOBIASSON (MELANIE) VS. NEV. COMM'N ON JUDICIAL DISCIPLINE (May 10, 2019)Request grantedWon - sought the court order case details
  • 78271 - IN RE: JUDICIAL DISCIPLINE OF OF MARTIN HASTINGS (May 8, 2019) case details
  • 75472-COA - PHILLIPS (ANTOINE) VS. STATE (Apr 16, 2019)Ruling upheldLost - challenged the ruling case details
  • 74527 - IN RE: JUDICIAL DISCIPLINE OF WILLIAM POTTER (Jan 25, 2018) case details
  • 70888 - AGWARA VS. STATE BAR OF NEVADA (Dec 7, 2017)Partly overturnedMixed - sought the court order case details
  • 73880 - IN RE: JUDICIAL DISCIPLINE OF WILLIAM KEPHART (Oct 31, 2017) case details
  • 70500 - CITY OF HENDERSON VS. AMADO (Jun 22, 2017)Ruling overturnedLost - defended the ruling case details

Case data via YourNevadaJudges.com - Nevada appellate decisions and orders

Profile data from official public records, last verified Aug 16, 2026. Request a correction via the corrections page.