Dawn R. Throne

Received a 77.4 percent "retain" score from lawyers in the Las Vegas Review-Journal's 2025 judicial performance survey, which UNLV conducted.

December 7, 2025

Source: reviewjournal.com

The Nevada Supreme Court refused a father's request to remove her from his custody case. He had claimed she was too close to the mother's former lawyer.

October 13, 2021

Source: acis-api.nvcourts.gov

Took her public oath of office at an investiture ceremony as the judge of Family Court Department U.

February 24, 2021

Source: clarkcountycourts.us

The court reported she had served 16 years as a State Bar fee-dispute arbitrator and had worked as a temporary (pro tem) hearing master. She also sat on the Southern Nevada Disciplinary Board, which hears complaints against lawyers.

February 22, 2021

Source: clarkcountycourts.us

Received a shared endorsement from the Las Vegas Sun for Family Court Department U in 2020. The Sun backed both her and her opponent, Bill Gonzalez.

October 7, 2020

Source: lasvegassun.com

Received the Las Vegas Review-Journal's endorsement in the 2020 primary for the new Family Court Department U seat. The paper cited her 24 years of family law experience.

May 13, 2020

Source: reviewjournal.com

Argued on Nevada's Child Support Guidelines Committee that if alimony counts as income for the person who receives it, it should be subtracted from the income of the person who pays it.

March 6, 2020

Source: dss.nv.gov

Led a meeting of Nevada's Child Support Guidelines Committee as its vice chair. The committee was reviewing the state's child support rules under a 2017 law. She presented her draft rule letting parents agree on support if they disclose their monthly income.

March 23, 2018

Source: dss.nv.gov

The Nevada Court of Appeals ordered a custody case moved away from her to another judge. It found her comments showed she had decided the outcome before an evidentiary hearing, which raised a reasonable doubt about her impartiality.

August 29, 2022Unfavorable on Impartiality

Source: acis-api.nvcourts.gov

The Nevada Court of Appeals upheld her orders giving a father sole legal custody and denying a mother's request to move the child to Nevada. It also upheld her award of legal fees to the father.

August 20, 2026Favorable on Legal Competence

Source: acis-api.nvcourts.gov

The Nevada Court of Appeals upheld her custody change in a high-conflict case. She had given the mother sole say over the child's medical care and activities and more parenting time, while keeping joint physical custody.

July 24, 2026Favorable on Legal Competence

Source: acis-api.nvcourts.gov

The Nevada Court of Appeals upheld her decision to send a child to the elementary school the mother chose, instead of the homeschooling the father wanted.

February 19, 2025Favorable on Legal Competence

Source: acis-api.nvcourts.gov

The Nevada Court of Appeals upheld her denial of a grandmother's request for guardianship of her granddaughter. She had found the grandmother did not prove her case by clear and convincing evidence.

January 15, 2025Favorable on Legal Competence

Source: acis-api.nvcourts.gov

The Nevada Court of Appeals voided her order dismissing a father's claims that the mother owed him loans. She had no power to act on those claims while an appeal was pending. Earlier in 2024, the Supreme Court had found she wrongly refused to hear his evidence on them.

December 24, 2024Unfavorable on Legal Competence

Source: acis-api.nvcourts.gov

The Nevada Court of Appeals upheld her order giving a father primary physical custody of a teenager. It found any error in leaving out evidence of past domestic violence was harmless.

October 22, 2024Favorable on Legal Competence

Source: acis-api.nvcourts.gov

The Nevada Supreme Court, in a published opinion, ruled she abused her discretion by denying grandparents temporary guardianship of a 5-year-old. She failed to consider the law allowing it for good cause. The court ordered her to grant it.

June 27, 2024Unfavorable on Legal Competence

Source: acis-api.nvcourts.gov

The Nevada Court of Appeals upheld her denial of a man's late request to undo a divorce order splitting his public pension with his ex-wife.

June 20, 2024Favorable on Legal Competence

Source: acis-api.nvcourts.gov

The Nevada Court of Appeals upheld her custody ruling giving a father primary physical custody after a trial. It found the errors in some of her findings were harmless.

June 6, 2024Favorable on Legal Competence

Source: acis-api.nvcourts.gov

The Nevada Court of Appeals upheld her ruling that a husband failed to disclose a real estate business in his divorce. She had awarded his ex-wife half its value, $34,938.56.

March 29, 2024Favorable on Legal Competence

Source: acis-api.nvcourts.gov

The Nevada Court of Appeals upheld her denial of a father's request to change child support and her $2,000 fee award against him. It warned that refusing all support changes before a three-year review would break state law when income changes by 20 percent or more.

December 13, 2023Favorable on Legal Competence

Source: acis-api.nvcourts.gov

The Nevada Court of Appeals upheld her divorce ruling splitting the growth in value of a home bought before the marriage. She had awarded the wife a $35,184 share plus legal fees.

November 2, 2023Favorable on Legal Competence

Source: acis-api.nvcourts.gov

The Nevada Court of Appeals, in a published opinion (Roe v. Roe), upheld her change of a child's custody but reversed her parenting-time order. It found she gave the father what was really sole custody without proper findings and handed her decisions to a therapist. It voided her fee award and sent the case to a new judge.

July 27, 2023Unfavorable on Legal Competence

Source: acis-api.nvcourts.gov

Won a Nevada Court of Appeals reversal for her client, a divorced father. The court threw out a $79,770 judgment that had made him keep paying half of private school tuition after a 2005 settlement's five-year term ended.

February 2, 2016Favorable on Legal Competence

Source: acis-api.nvcourts.gov

Admitted to practice law in Nevada (State Bar No. 6145). The State Bar lists no disciplinary actions against her.

October 14, 1996Favorable on Legal Competence

Source: nvbar.org