Commission delegates counsel duties to Associate Counsel Bassett and authorizes chair or vice chair to seek AG representation

The Nevada Commission on Ethics voted to delegate certain commission-counsel duties to Associate Counsel Elizabeth Bassett and to preserve separation of adjudicatory duties by using conflict counsel or the Attorney General's Office for hearings and litigation.

Executive Director Armstrong said the delegation would allow Bassett to perform advisory opinions, regulatory matters and jurisdictional determinations during a gap in a permanent commission counsel appointment, while litigation and adjudicatory responsibilities would be referred to conflict counsel. "It would allow Ms. Bassett to do that in the gap of having a commission counsel," Armstrong said, adding staff had identified duties that are appropriate to delegate and others that would require outside counsel.

Commission Counsel Tracy Chase, who disclosed she will retire on Dec. 12, emphasized statutory constraints on mixing investigatory and adjudicatory roles and recommended securing conflict counsel for contested cases. Chase told the commission that adjudicatory duties—setting discovery deadlines, scheduling hearings, ruling on continuances and preparing orders—are functionally adjudicatory and should remain separate from staff who served as investigators or prosecutors.

The commission approved two related actions. First, by motion the commissioners delegated specified non-adjudicatory commission-counsel responsibilities to Associate Counsel Elizabeth Bassett. Second, the commission gave authority to the chair or vice chair to send a letter to the Nevada Attorney General's Office to request interim representation for matters that require outside counsel and explained the AG's billing and budget allocation process. Executive Director Armstrong said the AG's office tracks hours and the commission would be assessed later through the budget-building process rather than paying immediate out-of-pocket fees.

Commissioners who spoke in favor said staff coordination and pre-planning had eased concerns about separation of duties and that a personnel subcommittee was scheduled to interview applicants for the commission-counsel position. The delegation and AG-request authority passed by voice vote.