Michael Foley discusses bid for justice of the peace

Pahrump Justice Court pro tem judge Michael Foley is running for justice of the peace this year.

“I love this job. I enjoy everything about it. It’s very interesting,” Foley told the Pahrump Valley Times. “I get to work with a lot of different people, a lot of different situations. It keeps my mind sharp, makes me think, and I just really enjoy it.”

Foley moved to Pahrump in 1998 after selling his two businesses in Massachusetts.

“It’s a great place to live,” Foley noted about his time in Nye County’s largest community.

Since January 2025, Foley has served as the pro tem judge for Department B of the Pahrump Justice Court.

“It’s definitely made me a better judge,” Foley said about his most recent uninterrupted period as pro tem judge. “I have far more experience now … I know the procedures now, and every case is different, but the procedure to get there is pretty much the same. So I’m more efficient. It’s a lot more comfortable because I know what to expect and what to look for.”

Foley was first appointed as a pro tem (substitute) judge in 2007 by the board of county commissioners at the request of late Justice of the Peace Tina Brisebill and has since served as needed through the years.

“She [Brisebill] was very smart. I learned an awful lot from her,” Foley elaborated. “I used to sit in her courtroom and watch and observe and see how she did things so that I could get better at it.”

After his 2007 appointment, Foley went to the National Judicial College in Reno for Special Court Jurisdiction training.

“It’s a slow process. There’s no formal training to be a justice of the peace, either a pro tem or an elected judge,” Foley explained. “So you kind of get in and do the best you can.”

When asked about his campaign for justice of the peace this year and the traits he would bring into the courtroom if elected, Foley mentioned the phrase he says often.

“The most important one is when the black robe goes on, I have no friends and I have no enemies,” Foley said, adding more about his judicial thinking with, “My biggest fear is unjustly depriving somebody of their rights. So I always try and be as prepared as possible before I go into court.”

Contact reporter Elijah Dulay at edulay@pvtimes.com