Reno, Nev. – The Honorable Egan Walker of the Second Judicial District Court, Family Division, Washoe County, has joined the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges (NCJFCJ) as a member of the board of directors.
Judge Walker was appointed by Governor Brian Sandoval to serve as the presiding judge in Department 2 on March 10, 2011, and then elected to the remaining term, unopposed in 2012.
Prior to his appointment and election, Judge Walker worked as a Family Court Master, a position he held from January 3, 2009 until his appointment by Governor Sandoval to the District Court bench. As a Court Master, Judge Walker re-worked the child support dockets to increase both the volume of cases heard in court, and the total number of cases resolved without a court hearing. He also assisted in the development of the Self Represented Litigant program, an innovative program designed to manage cases in which at least one of the parties appears without counsel.
Prior to working as a judicial officer, Judge Walker was in private practice, focusing on litigation including family law matters. As an example of the breadth of his practice, Judge Walker was one of the principal attorneys who represented the family of Charla Mack, a crime victim murdered by her husband during the parties’ divorce. Litigation involving Darren Mack’s misconduct crossed nine different cases in both state and federal courts.
From 1992 until March of 2000, Judge Walker worked as a Deputy District Attorney in both Carson City and Washoe County. He was responsible to prosecute all varieties of criminal misconduct, including nine first-degree murder trials and more than twenty trials involving allegations of sexual misconduct and/or child abuse. He was member of the Washoe County District Attorney’s Office Major Violators Unit, and served on the Washoe County Child Death Review Team.
Judge Walker attended the University of Pacific-McGeorge School of Law, graduating in 1991. While attending law school, he worked as a Registered Nurse in the Cardiac Intensive Care Unit at the University of California, Davis Medical Center.
He graduated from the University of Nevada, Reno, Orvis School of Nursing in 1986, and worked as an RN in ICUs and CCUs in both Nevada and California before, during and after law school.
From 1982 until 1990, Judge Walker was a member of the Army National Guard and Army Reserve, working as a medic, flight medic and nurse.
He currently serves on the Board of Directors of The Children’s Cabinet. He is past board member and member of Sparks Rotary, and has had the pleasure of working with the Reed High School We The People program and at Sierra Vista Elementary School.
Along with his duties on the Board of Directors, Washoe County’s Second Judicial District Court, Family Division, is one of six Project ONE court sites, in which Walker is the lead judge. The NCJFCJ’s Project ONE, named to signify a holistic approach to families through One Family/One Judge, No Wrong Door, and Equal and Coordinated Access to Justice, seeks to provide judges with guidance for supporting the needs of families and children no matter which jurisdictional “door” of the courthouse – family law, child welfare, family violence, juvenile justice, – that they enter.
“Judge Walker has a quick wit and amazing energy,” said Judge Darlene Byrne, NCJFCJ president. “I know with his leadership on the Board of Directors, the NCJFCJ will continue to innovate, so that family courts all across the country will continue to perform at the highest level possible for the children and families that they serve.”
About the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges (NCJFCJ):
Founded in 1937, the Reno, Nev.-based National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges, is the nation’s oldest judicial membership organization and focused on improving the effectiveness of our nation’s juvenile and family courts. A leader in continuing education opportunities, research, and policy development in the field of juvenile and family justice, the 2,000-member organization is unique in providing practice-based resources to jurisdictions and communities nationwide.