B. VS. DIST. CT. (CLARK CNTY. DEP'T FAM. SERV.) (FAMILY)

Statutes cited

Key holdings

Practitioner summary

This is an original proceeding seeking extraordinary writ relief - a writ of mandamus or prohibition - challenging the district court's jurisdiction in a proceeding under NRS Chapter 432B. The court set out the governing framework. A writ of mandamus is available to compel the performance of an act that the law requires as a duty resulting from an office, NRS 34.160, or to control an arbitrary or capricious exercise of discretion, Int'l Game Tech., Inc. v. Second Jud. Dist. Ct., 124 Nev. 193, 197, 179 P.3d 556, 558 (2008). A writ of prohibition arrests the proceedings of a tribunal that is acting in excess of, or without, jurisdiction, NRS 34.320. The court emphasized that the decision to entertain a petition for extraordinary writ relief is within its sole discretion, and that the petitioner bears the burden of demonstrating that such relief is warranted, citing Pan v. Eighth Jud. Dist. Ct., 120 Nev. 222, 228, 88 P.3d 840, 844 (2004). Applying that framework, and having considered the petition and supporting documents, the court concluded that petitioners had not demonstrated that extraordinary relief was warranted and denied the petition. In light of that disposition, the court denied as moot the petitioners' emergency motion filed on October 24, 2025.

In plain language

Two people, Antwann B. and Jessica B., asked the Court of Appeals of Nevada to step in and stop or override what a lower court (the family division of the Eighth Judicial District Court in Clark County) was doing in a case involving child welfare under NRS Chapter 432B, which governs the protection of children from abuse and neglect. They filed their request without a lawyer, representing themselves. The type of relief they sought is called an "extraordinary writ" - specifically a writ of mandamus or a writ of prohibition. A writ of mandamus is a court order forcing a lower court or official to perform a duty the law requires, or to correct an arbitrary or capricious use of discretion. A writ of prohibition is an order stopping a lower court from acting beyond, or without, its jurisdiction (its legal authority to hear the case). The Court of Appeals explained that deciding whether to even consider this kind of petition is entirely within its own discretion, and that the people asking for the writ carry the burden of showing that such relief is justified. After reviewing the petition and the documents submitted with it, the court concluded that the petitioners had not shown that extraordinary relief was warranted, and it denied the petition. Because the court denied the petition, it also denied as moot (no longer requiring a decision) an emergency motion the petitioners had filed on October 24, 2025.