NSHE Hires New General Counsel

Chancellor Thom Reilly announced that veteran government attorney Joseph Reynolds will be joining the Nevada System of Higher education administration as General Counsel in late August.

“Joe is a veteran of government service having advised Governor Sandoval on legal and policy matters as a member of his senior staff, chairing the Public Utilities Commission, and working as a state prosecutor,” Reilly said. “Joe’s professionalism and work ethic will be a welcome addition to NSHE.”

Reynolds currently serves as the Chairman of the Public Utilities Commission of Nevada and oversees the operations of the agency and its approximately 100 employees in Carson City and Las Vegas. As chairman, Reynolds presides as an administrative law judge over active litigation and runs the bi-weekly agenda meetings of the full commission.

Prior, Reynolds advised and represented Gov. Sandoval in legal and policy matters at every level of state and federal government. He also served as a liaison between the governor and cabinet-level directors and non-cabinet entities, such as the Gaming Control Board, the Ethics Commission, the Office of Attorney General, and the Division of Emergency Management.

Before joining Governor Sandoval’s senior staff, Reynolds was a Chief Deputy Attorney General under former Nevada Attorney General Catherine Cortez Masto, where he supervised 23 lawyers.

Reynolds graduated from UNLV with a Bachelor of Science in Secondary Education with an English emphasis in 1997. He attended law school at Gonzaga University in Washington.

It is a lifetime dream for Reynolds to work in higher education, he said.

“My roots are in education and law, and I am excited and honored to continue serving our great state in my new role with NSHE,” Reynolds said.

He is replacing Nicholas Vaskov, who is leaving to become the City of Henderson attorney. Reynolds officially joins NSHE on Aug. 27.