[5] Nelson graduated from the University of Arkansas in 1990 with a Bachelor of Arts, summa cum laude, in English literature and criminal justice.

[1] Nelson has been a member of the American Bar Association House of Delegates and the ABA Commission on Disability Rights.

[11] Governor Ted Kulongoski appointed Nelson as a judge on the Multnomah County Circuit Court in February 2006, to replace Sidney Galton.

[12] Governor Kate Brown appointed Nelson to the Oregon Supreme Court in January 2018, to replace justice Jack Landau, who retired on December 31, 2017.

[14] President Biden nominated Nelson to the seat vacated by Judge Michael W. Mosman, who assumed senior status on December 27, 2021.

[17] On January 3, 2023, her nomination was returned to the President under Rule XXXI, Paragraph 6 of the United States Senate; she was renominated later the same day.