LAS VEGAS JUSTICE OF PEACE 12

Two attorneys are vying for the newly created Las Vegas Justice of the Peace Department 12 seat.

Steve Smith and Diana L. Sullivan made it through a primary election field of four candidates.

To Smith, this is an opportunity to put his more than 25 years of legal experience to use in an effort to ease the load of the burgeoning court.

The 57-year-old has served as a public defender and prosecutor in Arizona, deputy attorney general in New Jersey and has spent the past 17 years as an arbitrator and substitute justice of the peace.

"If you can do more, you can do less," he said.

He lists as goals easing the efficiency of the court and working one on one with people who come before him in the courtroom.

Among his proposed changes, Smith said he would offer a traffic day for citizens to have their tickets adjudicated, and to show people firsthand how to handle their specific problems.

"The public deserves a right to be heard," he said. "I will be fair, punctual and I will treat people with respect."

Smith's opponent, Diana L. Sullivan, 41, has 15 years of litigation experience in Clark County, serving as a private arbitrator, small claims referee and as a pro tem justice of the peace. In written information provided to the Review-Journal, she said she has had a diverse range of past clients, from casinos, home builders and shopping centers to small business owners, individuals and indigent people.

Sullivan could not be reached for comment for this story.

Contact reporter Maggie Lillis at mlillis@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0279.