Surprisingly, not every single professional who works in the legal industry wanted to be a practicing attorney since their childhood. Quite like other fields, some attorneys found themselves in the legal field by either the stark uncertainty that comes with graduating college or by a certain set of opportunities, coincidences or defining experiences. Funny enough, these are lawyers that work in almost every possible field of law and are incredibly astute and hard-working attorneys despite their initial hesitation or disinterest in going to law school. Many of these individuals have become influential leaders and legal experts in their field of law and it shouldn’t be surprising if there’s a few high-ranking judges who were also unsure about attending law school in their younger years too.

Despite being a criminal defense attorney for over two decades now and a Nevada state senator who’s been a member of multiple Legislative committees and even chaired the vitally important Health and Human Services committee during the 2021 Legislature Session, Nevada District 3 Senator Rochelle Nguyen would fit the aforementioned description of someone hesitant to go to law school. 

“I had never met a lawyer until I was in law school.” Nguyen recollected, “I didn’t have any legal experience. I had never interned or done anything in high school or college in the legal profession.” Nguyen had a roommate who would be attending law school however, and convinced the soon-to-be attorney to take the LSAT.  

After graduating from the University of Puget Sound in 1999, Nguyen originally planned on attending Lewis and Clark College’s Law School. However, after a road trip with some friends down to sunny Las Vegas, Nguyen learned that the staff of UNLV had just founded and were creating a fully accredited law school named after William S. Boyd, an attorney and the founder of the everpresent Boyd Gaming Corporation. 

Before even fully enrolling in law school, she met with the deans and staff members of what would become the nationally recognized Boyd School of Law which had the number two spot for the best Legal Writing programs in America as of May 2023. 

“We’re looking for people who want to build an institution.” Nguyen was told. “My 21-year-old self was intoxicated by the sun and opportunity, so that’s how I ended up in law school.” 

During her time at this brand new law school, Nguyen showed her true legal prowess by founding both the Public Interest Law Association and the Law Journal for UNLV. Staying true to what the deans forecasted, Nguyen certainly used her time in law school to build an institution. Simultaneously, she also interned at the Federal Public Defenders’ Office which was her first important step into working in the field of law that she now practices in, that being the field of criminal defense. Needless to say, Nguyen definitely witnessed the endless number of injustices of the current criminal justice system in our country.

“I think the sad thing about the criminal justice system is that it puts a magnifying glass on every inequity that we have in society. The mental health crisis, addiction, racial injustice and health care inequities are all magnified under the lens of the criminal justice system. A lot of times, it’s incredibly depressing, but it also gives you an opportunity to see problems in that heightened sense and you can come up with better solutions.”

Especially with how severe the criminal justice system can be in the United States, it’s vital and crucial towards true and honest liberty that public defenders serve in both state legislatures and on the federal level as well. Luckily for Nevadans, former Speaker of the Assembly and fellow Boyd School of Law graduate Jason Frierson appointed Nguyen to be the Assembly member for District 10 after then Assemblyman Chris Brooks successfully ran for the 3rd District Senate seat. Frierson himself was appointed by President Biden to be the United States Attorney for the District of Nevada in 2022. Coincidentally, Nguyen was appointed to replace Brooks in the District 3 Senate seat in December of 2022 after Brooks’ resignation. 

Like many citizens of the Silver State, the lacking and underfunded public education system is a major issue that Nguyen is passionate about both as a legislator and as a proud mother of two children currently enrolled in CCSD schools. 

“Public education can be the great equalizer. It can give you opportunities for economic success and you can learn how to think critically which are both very important. Education is definitely one of those things that comes to the forefront.” Nguyen described.

Two other issues of great importance to Nguyen are the issues regarding affordable housing in the Las Vegas Valley and the very apparent need for infrastructure improvements. 

In August, Senator Nguyen was one of the panelists at a recent Chamber of Cannabis meeting that hosted influential legislators who played a key role in the cannabis-related Assembly and Senate bills passing in both houses. On Senate Bill 277, which doubled the daily cannabis purchasing limits in Nevada, Nguyen voted in favor. She also voted the same way with Assembly Bill 430, which changed the rates and percentages that Nevada cannabis businesses are taxed at. 

Nguyen worked extensively on Senate Bill 195, which greatly altered the powers and operations of the regulatory Cannabis Compliance Board as well as how steep CCB violation fines can be for cannabis businesses. 

“It incentivizes and rewards compliance with laws and regulations. It also adds transparency and consistency with the disciplinary process and inserts due process in there. I think it’s important to have the best structure to make the Nevada cannabis industry and businesses successful. People want to have understandable, fair regulations, requirements, fines and fees as well as structures that are understandable and equitable.” Given that Nguyen herself runs her own law firm, she knows the struggles of running a small business. 

“It’s interesting to see the evolution of policy within our state, and I’m excited to be one of the driving forces on where our policy moves forward in the future.”

Into the future, Nguyen has several plans. Along with running for her first election for District 3 in 2024, she’ll be watching the outcome of the bills signed from the 2023 Session to see how they’ve been implemented. Nguyen also wants to keep finding ways to minimize the illicit cannabis market by incentivizing legal cannabis operators further. In the 2023 Session, Nguyen filed SB 242, which would have required the Department of Health and Human Services to establish the Psychedelic Medicines Working Group. Assuming she wins re-election, Nguyen wants to continue the discussion around natural psychedelics for medical uses.