2019 COBALT CLASS

KRISTI BRUNKER

Kristi Disney Bruckner is an attorney licensed in Colorado, specializing in environmental law and policy, and international resources transactions law and policy. She is an Adjunct Professor of Law at the University of Denver Sturm College of Law, where she teaches Global Climate Change Law and Policy, and Sustainable Development and International Trade. Ms. Bruckner currently serves as the Executive Director at Sustainable Development Strategies Group (SDSG), where she develops and implements programs focused on natural resources management and sustainable development. These programs include seminars that build the capacity of developing country governments to negotiate and manage natural resource development agreements; workshops to educate government, community and industry stakeholders about roles, rights and responsibilities in natural resource development projects; assessments for international bodies such as the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) and Intergovernmental Forum on Mining, Minerals, Metals, and Sustainable Development; and university-based seminars and internship programs that build the skills of professional leaders around the globe to more sustainably manage natural resources. Prior to her work with SDSG, Ms. Bruckner utilized her background in social work, journalism, and economics to work collaboratively with governments and NGOs on international trade and development issues. She also worked for a leading environmental and personal injury law firm based in New York City.


 

JENNIFER CARTY

Jennifer Carty is an Assistant Attorney General in the Criminal Appeals Section of the Colorado Office of the Attorney General handling felony conviction and sentencing appeals on behalf of the State of Colorado.  Prior to her work as an AAG, Jennifer was an associate family law attorney at Robinson & Henry, P.C. focusing on dissolutions of marriage and allocation of parental responsibilities, both pre and post decree.  She frequently presented on family law issues facing the LGBT community and served as a faculty member for the 2017 Annual Family Law Institute.  Prior to joining R& H, Jennifer worked as an appellate law clerk for the Honorable Steven Bernard on the Colorado Court of Appeals.  In her pre-law school life, she spent five years as an active duty maritime inspections officer for the United States Coast Guard conducting regulatory compliance on the international shipping industry.  Jennifer continues to serve in the U.S. Coast Guard Reserve as an attorney and was recently deployed in support of response efforts for Hurricanes Irma and Maria.  She is active member of both the Colorado and the LGBT Bar Associations and is currently serving as a Co-Chair for the Colorado Women’s Bar Association Public Policy Committee.


 

 

JOHNATHAN BOOKER

Jonathan Booker – is an experienced trial attorney with Hernandez & Associates. He specializes in criminal defense litigation and the collateral consequences that accompany a criminal allegation. Jonathan places great emphasis in assisting underrepresented individuals as they navigate a complex judicial system. He has defended actions throughout Colorado before its various municipal, state and federal courts.  Jonathan is also an active member of the Colorado Hispanic Bar Association, currently serving as Chair of the Education committee.

 

 

 

 

 

JOHNATHAN GENEUS

Jonathan Geneus is an associate in the Denver office of Jackson Lewis P.C., where his practice focuses on representing management in their employee-related matters, including litigation and proactive advice and counsel.

After graduating from the University of South Florida in 2013, Jonathan spent one year working as a legal writer before enrolling at the University of Colorado Law School in 2014.  While at CU Law, Jonathan worked with both private- and public-sector employers in the Denver Metro Area, and served as the Vice President of the Black Law Students Association and Lieutenant Governor of Diversity for the ABA Law Students Division, 15th Circuit.  Jonathan was also privileged to be a member of the Colorado Technology Law Journal, through which he published his student note, Emoji: The Caricatured Lawsuit. 

While Jonathan is newer to the legal profession and Colorado generally, he is proud to be a part of the Colorado legal community, the members of which have welcomed Jonathan with camaraderie, solidarity, 

STEVE HAHN

Steve Hahn is a 3rd generation Colorado native, 3rd generation University of Denver Law school alumni and a father of three young men, Jeremy, Ted and Ben. Steve is a Senior Assistant City Attorney, at the City and County of Denver, working in the Municipal Operations Section and supporting City agencies including the Library, Technology Services, Purchasing and County Courts.  Previously Steve was a partner at the Law firm of Hahn, Smith Walsh and Mancuso, a firm specializing in municipal law and public finance.  Active the Bar Association, Steve served on CBA Executive Council (2016-2018), was the CBA Board of Governors Representative for the Government Section (2014-2018) and was past Chair and Vice-Chair of Metro Volunteer Lawyers (2006-2007).  Steve received the DBA pro bono award for over 100 volunteer hours of service.  In his spare time Steve enjoys traveling, walking his dog Monte, who he shares with Roxane, teaching and doing yoga.






Jennifer Hall

Jennifer Hall has made it her mission to help others through their legal issues with both expertise and compassion. As a 2009 graduate of Howard University School of Law, Jennifer puts great emphasis on ensuring that her role as an attorney is used to bring about change and legal assistance where it is most needed. After graduating from law school, Jennifer had the opportunity to work with the Honorable Judge Cross of the 18th judicial District Court and held internships at the City and County of Denver.  Jennifer has been an attorney at both the United States Attorney’s Office and the Colorado Attorney General’s Office and currently practices at the Gantenbein Law Firm where she primarily focuses on real estate, business, and foreclosure matters. Jennifer currently serves as the chair for the Young Lawyers Division of the Sam Cary Bar Association. When she is not practicing law she enjoys cooking, singing, laughing, and quality time with family and friends.

 

 

 

 

Tess Hand-Bender

Tess Hand-Bender is a senior associate at Davis Graham & Stubbs LLP and focuses her practice on complex commercial litigation, criminal defense, and internal investigations. She has represented clients from a variety of industries at all stages of litigation and confidential arbitration, from initiation of proceedings through trial and appeal. Ms. Hand-Bender has experience in a wide range of commercial disputes, including contract and business tort matters. Ms. Hand-Bender also maintains an active pro bono practice. In addition to working with the Colorado Lawyer’s Committee and serving as the chair-elect of its Young Lawyer’s Division, she first chaired a pro bono misdemeanor trial for an indigent client and served on the trial team representing nine Colorado couples who successfully challenged the constitutionality of Colorado’s ban on same-sex marriage. Ms. Hand-Bender and the team were honored with a Special Recognition Award from the Colorado Lawyers Committee and the Visionaries in Action Award from the GLBT Community Center of Colorado. Before joining DGS, Ms. Hand-Bender practiced at Reilly Pozner. She also served as a law clerk to the Honorable Neil M. Gorsuch of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, and to the Honorable Philip A. Brimmer of the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado. Ms. Hand-Bender graduated from Berkeley Law, where she was Order of the Coif and served as the submissions editor for the Criminal Law Journal. She attended Stanford University, where she obtained a B.A. in philosophy and was Phi Beta Kappa. She is active in the Colorado Women’s Bar Association and Colorado GLBT Bar Association and has been named a “Rising Star” by Colorado Super Lawyers. She is admitted to practice in Colorado and before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit and the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado.

 

Bryon Large 

Bryon M. Large is an Assistant Regulation Counsel with the Colorado Supreme Court Office of Attorney Regulation Counsel. He received his Juris Doctor degree from the University of Denver and his undergraduate degree in Spanish from the University of New Mexico. Prior to joining the office, Bryon worked in private practice as an immigration attorney for over nine years. Bryon is an elected member of the Board of Governors for the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), where he also serves on the Ethics Committee. He is a past Chapter Chair of the Colorado Chapter of AILA, a past Chair of the Immigration Law Section of the Colorado Bar Association, and is the Immediate Past President of the Colorado LGBT Bar Association. Bryon also currently serves on the Executive Council and the Board of Governors for the Colorado Bar Association. Bryon’s passion in life is being a father to his two children. 

 

 

 

 

Mary Linden

Mary Kominek Linden is an AV-rated attorney in private practice in Colorado Springs. Mary’s practice consists of representing small businesses and individuals in civil litigation, at both the trial court and appellate levels, and her focus, strength and passion lie in legal writing and analysis. Upon graduating from the University of Texas School of Law in Austin, then passing the California bar exam, Mary took the geographically-natural next-step of accepting employment with a law firm in Colorado Springs. Practicing law in what feels like a very small legal community has provided Mary with the opportunity to interact closely with talented attorneys and judges, and practice in an environment where professionalism and integrity to the ideals of justice, and the judicial process, are regularly discussed and explored. In 2015, Mary was appointed by Governor Hickenlooper to the Judicial Nominating Commission for the Fourth Judicial District. She has been a member and/or pupilage leader in the Ben S. Wendelken Inn of Court for over a decade. Mary is an active member of the Minority Over-Representation Sub-Committee of the Fourth Judicial District Juvenile Best Practices Court Committee, and was President of the El Paso County Women’s Bar Association in 2015-16. Mary is a Colorado native and a proud graduate of Arvada High School and the University of Colorado’s School of Business, in Boulder. For the past 4,500 days, Mary has enjoyed the adventure of practicing law with her husband/law partner at the Linden Law Group, and, most importantly, her three amazing children, ages 18, 17 and 15, keep her focused on the challenges and opportunities we are creating for future generations.

 

 

 

 

Kyle Martelon

Kyle J. Martelon, a Colorado native, is the Senior Associate Attorney with Ciancio Ciancio Brown, P.C. His practice includes family law and general litigation matters, including dissolution of marriage, allocation of parental responsibilities, dependency and neglect, post-decree matters, and adoptions. Kyle attended the University of Denver Sturm College of Law and graduated in 2010. During law school, he served as a federal judicial intern to the Honorable Magistrate Judge Craig B. Shaffer of the United States District Court for the District of Colorado. He also served as a legal intern in the Office of Legal Counsel for Colorado Governor Bill Ritter, Jr., assisted low income clients with various civil controversies in the University's Civil Litigation Clinic, and worked as a teaching assistant for the University's legal writing program. Further, he worked as a law clerk, and then as a contract attorney, for Outten & Golden LLP, a New York City-based employment law firm. Upon graduation from D.U., Kyle was inducted into the Order of St. Ives and went on to serve as a Law Clerk to the Honorable Jane A. Tidball at the Jefferson County District Court, where he assisted Judge Tidball in managing her division's civil, domestic, and criminal dockets. Prior to joining Ciancio Ciancio Brown, P.C., Kyle worked at boutique family law firm in downtown Denver, where he helped effectuate Colorado's first-ever dissolution of civil union action and engaged in substantial pro bono work, and then at the Denver District Attorney's Office. He enjoys running, travelling, skiing, and the local restaurant scene.

 

Thomas Neville

Thomas Neville is a Partner at Ogborn Mihm LLP. Thomas’ practice focuses on civil litigation, specifically insurance bad faith, personal injury, and legal malpractice cases. The son of a private investigator and a judge, Thomas grew up in Alaska, where he got his first taste of legal work as a student attorney with the Anchorage Youth Court. Educated at Gonzaga University, he spent six months studying at Oxford University, where he discovered his passion for the law. Thomas graduated from the University of Denver, Sturm College of Law in the top 10% of his class. During law school, Thomas was a student attorney for the Colorado Public Defenders Office. After graduating from law school, he spent two years working as a law clerk for the Colorado Court of Appeals, where he clerked for the Honorable JoAnn Vogt, the Honorable Bob Kapelke, and the Honorable Robert Hawthorne. Thomas has been an active member of the Colorado Trial Lawyers Association (CTLA) since 2006. He has served on CTLA’s Board of Directors since 2011, and has co-chaired CTLA’s amicus curiae (Friend of the Court) committee since 2010. In 2016, Thomas and his co-chair received the Outstanding Service to CTLA Award for their work as amici. Thomas wrote the amicus briefs in Bedor v. Johnson, 2013 CO 4, 292 P.3d 294 and Kendrick v. Pippin, 252 P.3d 1052 (2011), the pair of cases that resulted in the judicial abolition of the archaic “sudden emergency doctrine.” While originally intended to ameliorate the harsh impact of common law contributory fault, in Colorado, the sudden emergency doctrine was more often used by negligent defendants to avoid responsibility for their actions by claiming that everyday events, like encountering icy roads in the middle of winter, constituted unforeseeable emergency situations.

Noah Patterson

Noah Patterson is a Senior Assistant Attorney General at the Colorado Attorney General’s Office. There, he represents the Colorado Department of Revenue in corporate income tax litigation and performs general counsel work for the Department of Revenue. Mr. Patterson is also the Vice Chair of the Ethics Advisory Committee for the Colorado Attorney General’s Office. Mr. Patterson was a recipient of the Attorney General’s Award for Exceptional Performance in both 2014 and in 2017. Prior to joining the Attorney General’s Office, Mr. Patterson served as a law clerk to the Honorable Judge Diana Terry on the Colorado Court of Appeals. Mr. Patterson also served as a Co-Chair of the Denver Bar Association’s Access to Justice Committee from 2012 to 2017. He regularly volunteers with a Post-Decree Clinic co-sponsored by Metro Volunteer Lawyers and the Colorado Attorney General’s Office. Mr. Patterson has been a mentor in the Big Brothers Big Sisters program since 2010. Mr. Patterson is a 2010 graduate from the University of Denver Sturm College of Law and a 2006 graduate from Whitworth University in Spokane, WA.

 

Hannah Proff

Hannah Seigel Proff is an experienced trial attorney whose practice is dedicated to representing adults and juveniles charged in criminal and delinquency cases. From misdemeanors to the most serious of felonies, Ms. Proff has represented hundreds of individuals in state and municipal courts across Colorado. Before joining Johnson & Klein as a senior associate in 2016, Ms. Proff was the policy director for the Colorado Juvenile Defender Center. In that role, she successfully lobbied for legislation in the Colorado General Assembly to improve the treatment of children and youth in the juvenile justice system in Colorado. Ms. Proff was instrumental in getting landmark legislation passed that authorized resentencing hearings for individuals sentenced to life without parole for crimes committed when they were juveniles. Ms. Proff previously spent seven years as a trial attorney in the Denver office of the Colorado State Public Defender. During that time, she defended thousands of individuals and tried over 50 cases to verdict. Ms. Proff has been invited to lecture at legal conferences and trainings across the country on topics ranging from litigating pretrial motions to best practices when defending children charged as adults. Ms. Proff is also an adjunct professor at the University of Denver Sturm College of Law. Ms. Proff is an active member of the Colorado Bar Association, the Denver Bar Association, the Colorado Women’s Bar Association, the Colorado Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender (LGBT) Bar Association, the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, and the Colorado Criminal Defense Bar Association. A volunteer mentor for Colorado Youth at Risk, she co-founded and serves on the board of directors for Learn Your Rights in Colorado (LYRIC), a nonprofit organization that teaches high school students about their constitutional rights.

 

Josh Raaz

Josh is a Senior Lead Deputy District Attorney with the Seventeenth Judicial District Attorney’s Office in Adams and Broomfield Counties. Josh has been with the office for over 10 years and was promoted to Senior Lead Deputy District Attorney in 2014. Josh manages four deputy district attorneys and is in charge of a district court divisional docket. In addition to the four attorneys, Josh coordinates the duties of the division with two support staff members, a victim advocate and an investigator. Josh began his career in prosecution in 2004 in the State of Missouri. For nearly two years, Josh prosecuted in in Missouri before moving to Colorado. Josh has an extensive background in prosecution and trial litigation with over a hundred trials. Josh obtained his Juris Doctorate from the University of Missouri-Columbia in 2004 and his undergraduate degree in History in 1999 from Truman State University. Josh is proud to be a new member of the 2018 COBALT class and looking forward to further developing his leadership skills in the coming months.

Kelley Rider Goodwin

Throughout her career, Kelley Rider Goodwin, has been dedicated to advocating for individuals encountering some of life's greatest challenges. She is a firm believer that no individual should ever have to confront a legal crisis on their own and has made it the mission of our firm to deliver unwavering support to our clients. Kelley began her career at Colorado Legal Services in December 2009, providing legal assistance to low-income Coloradans. There, she worked in the Consumer Unit and helped individuals with Chapter 7 Bankruptcies as well as providing representation for foreclosure defense or mortgage modifications. In June 2010, she transferred to the Family and Children's Unit, exclusively practicing Family Law in the 6 counties around the Denver Metro area. Realizing that providing compassionate and skilled guidance in the field of family law was indeed her calling, she left Colorado Legal Services in December of 2014 and established her own sole law firm, Rider Goodwin Law Offices LLC. Attorney Rider Goodwin graduated from Auburn University in 2005 with two Bachelor of Arts degrees in Political Science and Criminology, as well as a minor in Africana Studies. She then attended the Sturm College of Law at the University of Denver, class of 2009, and was admitted to practice law in Colorado in October 2009 and Illinois in May 2010.

RECENT AWARDS:
  • 2017 Recipient of the Gary McPherson Young Lawyer of the Year from the Young Lawyers Division of the Colorado Bar Association
  • 2017 Colorado Coalition to Against Domestic Violence Purple Ribbon Community Ally Award of the in the Work to End Domestic Violence
  • Rising Young Attorney, 2017 and 2018
  • 2017 VIP Woman of the Year Circle Recipient, National Association of Professional Women
VOLUNTEER AND ADVOCACY WORK:
  • Board of Directors, kids 24/7
  • 1st Judicial Access to Justice
  • Adams County Domestic Violence Task Force
  • Metro Volunteer Lawyer
  • Family Tree
  • Women in Crisis
  • Project Safeguard

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Mallory Revel

Mallory is proud to be a trial attorney at Foster Graham Milstein & Calisher. She spent three years as a prosecutor in the Denver City Attorney’s office, and before that she was a deputy district attorney in Kansas City, MO and Springfield, MO. Mallory’s practice focuses on representing law enforcement officers in disciplinary, employment and administrative actions in Denver and throughout the state of Colorado. She also represents clients in criminal matters, and feels at home in the courtroom. Mallory is a member of the Colorado Women’s Bar Association and the Colorado LGBT Bar Association, and also spends time volunteering in the community.

 

 

 

 

 

Nicoal Sperrazza

Nicoal C. Sperrazza is an attorney with 3i Law in Denver, Colorado. She began her legal career in civil litigation before expanding her practice to include family law. After graduating from the University of Denver Sturm College of Law in 2011, Nicoal served as the National Co-Director for a moot court competition funded by the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association. As part of Nicoal's community involvement, contributions to the legal profession, and leadership, she was awarded the 2013 Governor Ralph Carr Award from the Asian Pacific American Bar Association of Colorado. Nicoal currently serves in several leadership roles, including President-Elect for the Asian Pacific American Bar Association of Colorado, Member At Large (Community Service) and Group Leader for the Minoru Yasui Inn of Court, and Treasurer for the Colorado Bar Association Litigation Section Council.

 

 

 

 

Anda Stephenson

Anda is a general business attorney and a business law instructor. She is also one of the founders of the Funkwerks brewery in Fort Collins. Her practice emphasizes representation of private, profit, and non-profit entities of all sizes in connection with business formation; brewery, winery, and distillery formation and licensing; mergers, acquisitions, and leveraged buyouts; borrowing, lending, and venture capital transactions; distribution, licensing, and franchise arrangements; employee matters; advising boards of directors; trademark, trade secret, and other intellectual property issues; and general contract drafting and negotiation. Anda is admitted to practice law in Colorado, Arizona, and Oregon. She earned her Juris Doctorate from Lewis & Clark Law School, and her undergraduate degree from Arizona State University. Anda has actively supported several nonprofit organizations throughout her career, most recently The Family Center in Fort Collins, CO where she serves on the board of directors.

 

 

 

Mario Trimble

Mario Trimble is a partner in the public finance department of Kutak Rock LLP, acting primarily as bond counsel and disclosure counsel for various Colorado governments and related entities in the financing of public infrastructure throughout the State and beyond. He also serves as a member of the Board of Governors and the Executive Council of the Colorado Bar Association as well as the board of directors and executive committee of the Center for Legal Inclusiveness, a Colorado nonprofit corporation dedicated to increasing diversity and inclusiveness in the legal profession. Mario received his Juris Doctor degree from the University of Colorado School of Law in 2005 and his undergraduate degree in Political Science from Yale University in 1997. By far, Mario’s greatest accomplishment in life, though, has been convincing his wife to marry him and together raising two amazing, brilliant, passionate children who altogether give him more joy than he probably deserves.

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