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On Feb. 1, 2023, Taylor Bechel '11 joined the Boulder office of Berg Hill Greenleaf Ruscitti LLP as a non-equity partner in the Private Client Services Group. Her practice focuses on advising individuals and families on estate planning, probate, estate administration, and trust administration. Prior to joining Berg Hill, Bechel spent 10 years practicing high-net-worth trust and estate law at two AmLaw 100 national law firms.

Kevin M. Brown '13, an associate in the San Diego office of Snell & Wilmer, has joined the Board of Palomar Health Foundation, a nonprofit 501(c)(3) that supports the programs, services, projects, and growing needs of the healthcare district in San Diego. Brown's primary area of practice is employment law.

In June 2023, Kimberly Pryor '10 was awarded the prestigious Legends in Law Award as part of this year’s Burton Awards. Held in association with the Library of Congress, the Legends in the Law Award is given to general counsel who have an outstanding reputation in the legal profession and a demonstrated track record of addressing complex matters of national or global significance in a specialized area. Pryor serves as general counsel at JBS Foods USA, located in Greeley.

On May 12, 2023, Adrian Untermyer ’20 moderated a panel discussion inside Manhattan’s monumental Appellate Division, First Department courthouse considering the past, present, and future of our nation’s judicial architecture against the backdrop of today’s rapid social and technological change. Panelists included the acting presiding justice of that court, Dianne T. Renwick, along with artist Shahzia Sikander, who was recently featured in the New York Times for adding the first-ever female figure to the courthouse’s landmarked exterior sculptural façade. The event was co-sponsored by the Historical Society of the New York Courts, and a recording will be made available on their website.

Patrice Kunesh '89 was sworn in as the commissioner of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Administration for Native Americans (ANA). The ANA was established to promote self-sufficiency and cultural preservation for Native Americans through training, technical assistance, and grant funding for economic development, cultural revitalization, and environmental protection.

Larry Farin '73 is happily retired in Lake Oswego, Oregon.

Andrew Neiman '19 joined the Denver office of Buchalter. He focuses his practice on commercial litigation and labor and employment.

Jon Ploetz '01 joined Applied Industrial Technologies as vice president – general counsel  and secretary. In this role, Ploetz will lead the company’s global legal affairs, governance and compliance activities, ESG efforts, and corporate secretary duties.

Ethan McQuinn '05 formed a law firm, Kane Dulin McQuinn Young, with fellow Colorado Law graduate Travis Young '03.

Michael LaVigne '14 joined the boutique probate firm Glatstein & O'Brien LLP in Denver. He specializes in probate litigation.

Chester Fernández '12 will start a tenure-track assistant professor of law position at Quinnipiac University School of Law in fall 2023.

A slew of Colorado Law alumni and faculty contributed to a new book, How to Be a Lawyer: The Path from Law School to Success, coauthored by longtime Colorado Law adjunct faculty member Jason Mendelson. Contributors to the book include Brad Bernthal '01, Stacy Carter '07, Tyrone Glover '09, Nicole Day '10, Ryan Day '10, Josh Fitch '17, Nicholas Troxel '17, and former dean Phil Weiser. With candid advice and mentorship about how to bridge the gaps between law school and the actual practice of law, the book has been hailed as a "must-read" for law students and new lawyers.

Ann Edelman '92 was promoted to chief legal officer and vice president of Compliance for Colorado Access and its subsidiaries and the Colorado Access Foundation. Edelman will assume strategic leadership of the company’s compliance department in addition to leading the legal department and serving as a member of the executive leadership team. Colorado Access is a nonprofit health maintenance organization whose mission is to partner with communities and empower people through access to quality, equitable, and affordable care.  Edelman serves on the Colorado Bar Association Board of Governors and on the Colorado Bar Association’s Leadership Selection Committee. She is a participating member of the United States Equestrian Federation, the United States Dressage Federation, and the Rocky Mountain Dressage Society and competes her horses in the sport of dressage.

After a few years as a staff attorney in the trial division at the Public Defender Service for the District of Columbia, Stone MacBeth '20 recently moved and started a new job as a staff attorney in the Criminal Practice Division at The Bronx Defenders.

Kristin Bronson '97 will start a new job as executive director of the Colorado Lawyers Committee (CLC) on May 1, 2023. Bronson will oversee all aspects of the Lawyers Committee, a nonpartisan consortium of 70 Colorado law firms dedicated to creating and increasing opportunities for children, the poor, and other disadvantaged communities through pro bono legal advocacy, negotiation, and litigation.

Dru Nielsen '97 become a fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers, one of the premier legal associations in North America. The induction ceremony took place in front of approximately 525 people during the College's spring meeting. Nielsen is a partner in the firm of Haddon, Morgan and Foreman, P.C. in Denver and has been practicing for 26 years. Nielsen is proud to join her current partners and retired members, Laura Menninger, Jeff Pagliuca, Hal Haddon, Saskia Jordan, Pamela Mackey, Lee Foreman, and Bryan Morgan '66 in this fellowship.

Mike Simpson '16 was named senior counsel at Wood, Smith, Henning & Berman LLP. Simpson works out of the firm's Denver office where he handles complex civil litigation matters and assists its national insurance coverage practice.

Jim Manley ’08 started a new role as state legal policy deputy director at Pacific Legal Foundation, where he has been litigating in defense of free speech, economic opportunity, and property rights since 2018. In his new role, he will work to enact PLF's innovative legislative solutions in statehouses across the nation.

Lindsay Brown '09 opened her own law firm with partner Kelly Meilstrup. Her practice focuses on Title IX investigations, school discipline, and other education and juvenile law matters. Brown recently hired fellow Colorado Law alumna Britta Kruse '09, who spent the past 10+ years doing amazing work in the appellate division of the Colorado State Public Defender’s Office. Kruse joined our team as senior appellate counsel.

Ryan Thomas '08 joined Landye Bennett and Blumstein in Anchorage, Alaska, as an associate attorney. Previously he practiced law in the Lower 48 and then worked for the state of Alaska, Department of Natural Resources before returning to private law practice. At LBB, Thomas will focus on real estate transactions, business law, working with Alaska Native corporations, and other transactional work.