Recording A Call
NRS 200.620 and NRS 200.650 — a phone call needs a party's consent and an emergency; a conversation in person, one participant's authorization
A phone call: consent and an emergency. Intercepting a wire communication in Nevada is unlawful unless the interception is made with the prior consent of one of the parties to it and an emergency situation exists in which it is impractical to obtain a court order first. The section joins the two conditions with "and".
Whoever intercepts a call in such an emergency has to apply in writing, within 72 hours of the interception, to a justice of the Supreme Court or a district judge to ratify it. If ratification is denied, any use or disclosure of what was intercepted is unlawful, and the sender and receiver have to be told the call was intercepted and ratification refused.
A conversation in person: one participant. A person may not surreptitiously listen to, monitor or record a private conversation engaged in by other persons with a listening device, or disclose what was said in it, unless authorized to do so by one of the persons engaging in the conversation.
| Willful and knowing violation | What follows |
|---|---|
| Willful and knowing violationThe crime | What followsA category D felony |
| Willful and knowing violationOwed to the person whose call or conversation was intercepted | What followsActual damages, or liquidated damages of $100 per day of violation but not less than $1,000, whichever is greater |
| Willful and knowing violationAlso recoverable | What followsPunitive damages, and costs including a reasonable attorney's fee |
Recording the police. A person who is not under arrest or in custody may record a law enforcement activity, by camera, phone, sound or written notes, and keep the recording and the device. An officer may not intentionally prevent the recording, threaten the person for it, order it stopped when the person is authorized by law to record, stop, seize or search the person because of it, or unlawfully seize or destroy the recording or the device. The section does not authorize interfering with or obstructing what the officer is doing.
Calls recorded on the emergency lines of law enforcement and fire-fighting agencies and public utilities, and interceptions under a court order, are excepted, and those rules are not reproduced here. Whether a particular recording falls on the lawful side is a question for a court and for a licensed Nevada attorney.
Sources for this section (4)
- NRS 200.620 — Interception and attempted interception of wire communication prohibited
- NRS 200.650 — Unauthorized, surreptitious intrusion of privacy by listening device prohibited
- NRS 200.690 — Penalties
- NRS 171.1233 — Recording of law enforcement activity
Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of October 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed Nevada attorney.