Miko Brown
President
Admissions and Outreach Committee

Miko A. Brown is Associate General Counsel, Community Trust at Airbnb, Inc. In her current role, she is responsible for advising Airbnb’s Trust, Anti-Discrimination, and Community Support teams on products, processes, policies and programs. Ms. Brown also serves as a mentor and leads three work streams that are part of the company’s Diversity & Belonging initiative: Fair Work Allocation, Requiring Diverse Interview Panels, and mandatory Diversity & Belonging training for the Legal Department. Prior to Airbnb, Ms. Brown was a Partner at Davis Graham & Stubbs LLP (DGS), specializing in defending high profile companies in catastrophic personal injury cases.  At DGS, Ms. Brown co-chaired the DGS Diversity & Inclusiveness Committee, and was an active member of the DGS Women’s Network. 

Prior to DGS, Ms. Brown worked at Wheeler Trigg O’Donnell (WTO), becoming a Partner in 2011, where she focused her national litigation practice on defending product designers, manufacturers, and retailers in product liability and commercial matters.  In 2013, Ms. Brown launched the Women in Leadership Lecture Series Program at WTO, which challenged the Colorado legal sector to rethink what constitutes effective business development and mentorship for women.  

Prior to joining WTO, Brown was associated with an international Denver-based law firm and an international Phoenix-based law firm. She also served as a judicial law clerk to The Honorable John L. Kane of the United States District Court for the District of Colorado. 

Ms. Brown joined the Colorado Access to Justice Commission, which helps disadvantaged women and minorities in Colorado obtain legal representation and assistance. Ms. Brown currently serves on the Colorado Bar Association (CBA), and Denver Bar Association (DBA) Joint Task Force on increasing the number of women and diverse lawyers in leadership positions within the CBA and DBA, as well as the Joint Task force on increasing the number of women and diverse judges in Colorado. Before the pandemic, Ms. Brown partnered with Colorado Supreme Court Justice Melissa Hart’s “Judicial Dream Team,” through which she helped Justice Hart identify future women and diverse judges to attend a dinner at her home. 

Ms. Brown has served as president of the Colorado Asian Pacific American Bar Association, and as a board member for the Colorado Women’s Bar Association, and the Center for Legal Inclusiveness. Ms. Brown was appointed to the Corporate Leadership Council of Children’s Hospital.  

In 2020, Ms. Brown received a Women, Influence & Power in Law Award from Law.Com’s “Corporate Counsel” program. In 2019, Law Week Colorado named Ms. Brown among its Top Litigators. In 2018, she was a finalist in the “Minority Female Lawyer of the Year” category for the Chambers Women in Law Awards. In 2019, she received special recognition in the Innovative Leadership Category of the Corporate Counsel Women in Law Awards. Additionally, the Colorado Women’s Bar Association Foundation honored Ms. Brown with the 2017 Women Lawyers Who Raise the Bar Through Systemic Reform or Innovation Award. In 2015, 2017, and 2019, Benchmark Litigation spotlighted her as a “Future Star” in Colorado. In 2020, Benchmark Litigation elevated her ranking to that of “State Litigation Star.” 

Ms. Brown has been a supporter of LSYWC and was the keynote speaker at the 2020 Holiday Fiesta. 

Ms. Brown holds a J.D. from the University of Pennsylvania Law School, and a B.A. from the University of California, Berkeley. 

Ryan Tseng
Vice President
Chair of Admissions and Outreach Committee

Ryan Tseng is a Colorado native who moved to Denver to complete his BSBA in Strategic Business Management at the University of Denver. While in undergrad, Ryan completed an ethics-based fellowship and worked as the Daniels Fund Ethics Initiative Student Director. Following his time in undergrad, Ryan went on to become the business manager for a startup firm before returning to DU for law school. During his 1L summer, Ryan worked in-house drafting memorandums used in litigation, developed a firm-wide DEI training, and worked closely with the CLO in drafting SEC regulatory updates for the C-suite. 

Now Ryan serves as a board member for Law School . . . Yes We Can!, as a staff editor on the Denver Law Review, the President of the Denver Law Outdoors Club, and will be joining Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck in 2023 as a summer associate. 

Ryan has found a calling and passion in advancing the voices of systemically disenfranchised people and hopes to further those efforts in promoting DEI initiatives in the Denver legal community.

Jason A. Márquez
Treasurer
Past President
Admissions and Outreach Committee

Jason A. Márquez has been practicing law since 2008, almost exclusively in family law and is the Owner of Márquez Law in Denver.  However, he has and continues to work in criminal defense.  Mr. Márquez brings a fresh perspective to Law School…Yes We Can, with an extensive background in the corporate world where he provided operational, technical, management, finance, and legal support to several corporations.  

Mr. Márquez is a Colorado native who grew up in a single parent home.  He has a great appreciation for the plight of his clients who separate and go on to be single parents.  He advocates for and stands by his clients no matter what, but remains steadfast and conscientious of the issues in his cases.  Mr. Márquez is extraordinarily efficient and mindful of his clients’ goals and resources at all times.  

Mr. Márquez acquired a BA from Westmont College where he double majored in Economics & Business and Physics.  He went on to acquire an MBA from the University of Colorado at Denver with an emphasis in change management.  He acquired his Juris Doctorate from the Denver University Sturm College of Law in 2007 where he was awarded the Outstanding Student Attorney Award and the Student Leadership Award. 

Eliz Espinoza
Secretary
Chair of Young Professionals Network
Chair of Fundraising and Donor Communications Committee
Program and Curriculum Committee

Eliz Espinoza has been working in the field of law as a senior paralegal for over a decade.  Eliz is currently a 3L at the University of Denver, Sturm College of Law, and is set to graduate in May 2024, where she will continue her legal career as a litigation associate with Sherman & Howard. While at DU, Eliz received the 2023 Outstanding Student Lawyer Award for her service in the Criminal Defense Clinic and served as a Senator in the Student Bar Association.

As a Denver native, Eliz feels very deeply about supporting her community I every way.  In line with her commitment to serving the community, Eliz gives her time to Metro Volunteer Lawyers, contributing to their family law pro bono clinics; and has previously served on boards of various non-profits and charities in Denver, channeling her fundraising acumen to foster change. As a proud representative of the Hispanic community, she ardently supports the cause of expanding diversity in law. Through her involvement with Law School… Yes We Can, she is actively working towards this vision, aiding students who share her zeal for making a difference.

John Baker
Governance and Nominating Committee

On June 30, 2016 John retired as director of the Colorado Attorney Mentoring Program. John was appointed by the Colorado Supreme Court Advisory Committee in February of 2013 as the first director of CAMP. Grand kids, pro bono work, teaching NITA, serving as the Treasurer of the Board of Directors of the Center for Legal Inclusiveness, and volunteering with bar and Court committees will keep me busy. (When Jane and I are not travelling the world or relaxing on the shores of Lake Michigan in Door County, Wisconsin.)

John spent 35 years concentrating his legal practice in products liability litigation, representing individuals that have been injured by defective pharmaceutical products and vehicles. John was listed was a Colorado Super Lawyer for 2007 to 2011.

John has a strong interest in teaching advocacy skills. John served as Executive Director of the National Institute for Trial Advocacy (“NITA”) 2010 – 2012. John, also, lectures in Colorado, nationally, and internationally on professionalism issues, on torts/product liability issues, and on trial advocacy.

John has always had a special interest in professionalism and professional responsibility. John served as President of the Denver Bar Association 2009-2010. John is a member of the American, Colorado, and Denver Bar Associations, the Colorado Trial Lawyers Association and is a fellow of the International Society of Barristers.

In Denver John is active in the community. John serves on the Colorado Supreme Court Chief Justice’s Commission on the Legal Profession. He is past president of the board of directors of Denver Kids, Inc. John is married and has three children and four grandchildren, who have involved him over the years in coaching youth soccer, basketball and baseball.

Erica Gartenberg
Programming and Curriculum Committee

Erica Gartenberg is the Director of Legal Talent Acquisition at Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck, where she focuses on the recruitment of talented attorneys who embody Brownstein’s core values to join the firm’s various offices and practice groups. Erica practiced civil and white-collar litigation for seven years in Manhattan at Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson and BakerHostetler before transitioning to legal recruiting and consulting. She worked at a legal recruiting and consulting boutique in Manhattan and founded her own firm, Rocky Mountain Legal Search, when she moved to Denver in 2017. In her career as a recruiter, she placed attorneys in roles ranging from law firm associates to general counsels, and worked with law firms, corporations and startups in a variety of industries from financial services to publishing. She has spoken at Harvard Law School, University of Pennsylvania Law School and has been a frequent contributor to Vault.com's Law Blog.

Erica received her J.D. from The University of Pennsylvania Law School and her B.A. from the University of Florida. 

Jennifer Jaskolka
Fundraising and Donor Communications Committee

Jennifer is a genuine, out-of-the-box thinker who is driven to get to "yes." She helps companies reach goals by aligning their mission and values with appropriate governance, processes, transparency and communication, and is adept at developing teams to acclimatize quickly to new approaches, direction, and regulatory standards. She led one of the most complicated industry players, an electric and natural gas utility, into top quartile safety performance and early adoption of best-in-class EHS practice, standards, and processes resulting in ongoing business performance improvement. Jennifer recently joined the largest national non-emergency medical transportation and home healthcare company as Deputy General Counsel and is replicating her utility industry success. Jennifer is a consensus builder who improved operating metrics, regulatory recovery, and risk transfer at a Fortune 300, $11B company and is embarking on the same trajectory at her current employer, a rapidly growing $2.2B company. Committed to accountability, Jennifer has created and implemented performance reporting, including formulating and shaping KPI scorecards to right-size the work to resources needed, shift high-priority work in-house, and diversify suppliers. Jennifer's 20+ years of legal experience has made her versed in identifying, transferring, mitigating and managing risk. Skilled at crisis management, she knows how to protect company brand while strengthening relationships with regulators, customers, and the community. 

As co-president of a decades-old non-profit, Jennifer nearly doubled the number of benefactors and executive committee members, driving a three-fold revenue increase which allowed for first-time funding of multiple scholarships for diverse students. Through her position with the City and County of Denver Board of Public Health and Environment, Jennifer helped promulgate a resolution declaring racism a public health crisis, bringing social determinants of health front and center. As a minority, first-generation American and first college graduate in her family, Jennifer approaches issues with a lens toward diversity, inclusion, equity, social justice, and environmental stewardship.

Dermot Lynch
Admissions and Outreach Committee

Dermot Lynch is a federal prosecutor with the United States Department of Justice’s Fraud Section. He previously worked in private practice and as a Skadden Fellow at Towards Justice, a Denver-based impact litigation firm that represents low-wage workers. Dermot began his legal career by clerking for Judge Arguello and at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit. He was born in Dublin, Ireland, and immigrated with his family to Colorado when he was three. Between college at Loyola University and law school at Yale, Dermot spent three years living in the town of Tacna, in Southern Peru, where he taught English with Jesuit Volunteers International.

Judge Roberto Ramírez
Admissions and Outreach Committee

Roberto Ramírez is a state District Court Judge in the 17th Judicial District.  He is also a Federal Military Appellate Judge on the Air Force Court of Criminal Appeals.  Roberto also teaches as an adjunct professor of law at both CU and DU law school.  

Roberto obtained his undergraduate degree from the University of Texas, San Antonio, and his law degree from the South Texas College of Law in Houston, but has also studied at Air University (Air Command and Staff College), as well as the Army JAG School at the University of Virginia School of Law (The 62nd Military Judge’s Course). 

Roberto has worked as a civilian attorney, Air Force federal prosecutor, criminal defense counsel, trial consultant, or instructor in Japan, South Korea, Africa, Guam, Singapore, Australia, Diego Garcia (Indian Ocean), Colombia, Mexico City, Greenland, Hawaii, Colorado, California, New Mexico, Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota, Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, Louisiana, Alabama, Arkansas, North Carolina, Florida, Georgia, New Jersey, and Washington, D.C. Roberto has taught in the areas of criminal procedure, trial advocacy, and civil rights in Tokyo, Japan; Barranquilla and Bogota, Colombia; Mexico City, Washington, DC; Vail, Colorado; and at CU Boulder. 

Roberto is the former chair of the Education Committee for the Colorado Hispanic Bar Association (CHBA), the former chair of the Pro Bono and volunteering Committee for the CHBA, the former chair of the Spanish Speaking Lawyers Committee for the Colorado Bar Association, and member of the Court Interpreter Oversight Committee of the Colorado Supreme Court. 

Roberto is also a Marshall Fellow.  The fellowship is the German Marshall Fund’s flagship leadership development program. Created to introduce a new generation of European leaders to the United States, it now prepares leaders from both sides of the Atlantic for transatlantic relations.  The program relies on 6 months of distance learning and 24 days of first-hand experience to facilitate knowledge and network development for effective transatlantic engagement.  Roberto started his program in Washington DC, then traveled to Brussels, Belgium; Freiburg, Germany; Athens, Greece; Sarajevo, Bosnia; and Berlin, Germany. 

J. Ryann Peyton
Governance and Nominating Committee

Ryann serves as the Director of the Colorado Attorney Mentoring Program (CAMP), a program of the Colorado Supreme Court. A former litigator and a seasoned consultant and advocate on professionalism, diversity, and equity in the legal field, Ryann is a frequent commentator, presenter, and lecturer having contributed to the Denver Post, Law Week Colorado, Denver Business Journal, KDVR Fox 31, Rocky Mountain PBS, and Colorado Public Radio. Prior to joining CAMP, Ryann focused their law practice on civil litigation with an emphasis on LGBTQ+ families and civil rights.

Ryann is co-founder of RANGE Consulting, a social enterprise focused on providing employers with strategies for cultivating LGBTQ+ workplace inclusivity. RANGE is Colorado’s only consulting organization dedicated solely to the needs of LGBTQ+ employees and the workplaces in which they are employed. Partnering with hundreds of corporations, non-profits, and government entities across the state, RANGE assists employers in creating inclusive policies and systems, solving common equity related workplace challenges, and maintaining legal compliance.

Ryann has been routinely recognized for their legal practice, most recently earning the American Bar Association Rosner & Rosner Young Lawyer Professionalism award and the Colorado Bar Association’s Outstanding Young Attorney of the Year award. Ryann sits on the boards of the Colorado LGBT Bar Foundation, The Center on Colfax, Alzheimer’s Association of Colorado, and Center for Legal Inclusiveness. Ryann was recently appointed as the 2022 President of the Colorado Bar Association. Ryann earned their law degree from the University of St. Thomas School of Law and holds an LLM and undergraduate degree from the University of Denver.

Amy Beatie
Co-Chair of Fundraising and Donor Communications Committee

Amy Beatie moved to Colorado immediately after college in 1993 and—aside from short detours to Alaska and Wyoming—has lived in Colorado ever since.  From November 2007 until December 2017, she served as the Executive Director of the Colorado Water Trust, whose mission is to provide water to Colorado’s rivers in need.  Prior to working at the Trust, Ms. Beatie practiced water law at two Front Range water law firms; clerked for the Honorable Gregory J. Hobbs, Jr. of the Colorado Supreme Court; and worked on water and oil and gas issues for a nonprofit in Wyoming.  She has also served as an Adjunct Law Professor at the University of Denver Sturm College of Law.  Starting in 2019 and for the following four years, Ms. Beatie served as the top natural resources and environmental law for the State of Colorado.  She is now the Executive Director of Keep It Colorado, a statewide nonprofit dedicated to private land conservation. 

In addition to the LSYWC Board, Ms. Beatie serves on the Board of Directors of Volunteers for Outdoor Colorado.  Past volunteer leadership roles have included the Advisory Council of the One World One Water Center of Metro State University ,the Board of Directors of the Colorado Water Congress, and the Advisory Board of the University of Denver Water Law Review, a law review that she helped launch when she was in law school. 

She obtained her undergraduate degree from Dartmouth College and her law degree from the University of Denver Sturm College of Law. 

Jacqueline V. Roeder
Co-Chair of Programming and Curriculum Committee

Jackie Roeder is partner at Davis Graham & Stubbs LLP, where her practice focuses on internal investigations, white collar defense, commercial, and tort litigation. She is experienced in representing both companies and individuals in SEC, DOJ, and other government investigations, as well as in counseling clients on compliance issues. Ms. Roeder also has deep trial experience defending large corporations against contract, product liability, and personal injury claims.

Ms. Roeder is a member on the board of trustees for the Legal Aid Foundation of Colorado and a former member for the board of advisors for Colorado Succeeds. She recently joined the Law School… Yes We can board of directors and served as co-chair of the Law School...Yes We Can! 2022 Building Futures fundraiser. Internally, she is co-chair of the Women in Leadership Lecture Series, a program featuring valuable perspectives on how to overcome personal and professional obstacles on the path to leadership.

Before joining DGS, Ms. Roeder was an associate and counsel at O’Melveny & Myers in New York, where her practice focused on securities litigation, enforcement actions, white-collar criminal defense, and internal investigations.

Ms. Roeder holds degrees from the University of Michigan Law School and Princeton University. She is admitted to practice in Colorado and New York, as well as before the U.S. District Courts for the District of Colorado and Southern District of New York and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit.

Madeleine Rosengrants
Chair of Programming and Curriculum Committee

Madeleine Rosengrants is an associate attorney with the firm Sherman & Howard, where she is the associate chair of the firm’s Women’s Initiative. As a talented family law practitioner and skilled litigator, Madeleine represents clients at every stage of a case.  Madeleine has favorably resolved contentious divorces and regularly advises on and structures agreements regarding allocation of parental responsibilities (parenting and decision making issues), child support, maintenance, relocation, and high-asset property distributions. Madeleine is a collaboratively trained lawyer and is often able to help spouses amicably end their marriage or resolve disputes without the need for contentious litigation.

Madeleine is a Colorado native. She received a B.S. and a B.A. from Colorado State University and a J.D. from the University of Denver Sturm College of Law. Madeleine teaches as an adjunct professor of law at the University of Denver Sturm College of Law and coaches the University of Denver National Trial Team.

Heidi Ruckriegle
Fundraising and Donor Communications Committee

As Compliance, Employment & Litigation Counsel Heidi provides legal oversight and support to Gates’ businesses and employees worldwide. She is responsible for the design, administration, implementation, and evolution of Gates’ business integrity program. She partners with every aspect of the business to manage a cross-functional, enterprise-wide business integrity program that takes a practical approach to managing risk. Heidi serves a critical role leading internal investigations into potential, legal, regulatory, or policy violations. In addition, she develops productive working relationships with all levels of management and delivers global compliance and integrity education programs for employees.

Heidi is an Adjunct Professor at the University of Colorado Law School where she teaches “The Evolution of the Whistleblower” as part of the Masters of Studies in Law Ethics and Compliance Program.

Before Gates, Heidi managed the Business Integrity Office at a Fortune 500 company.

Prior to moving in-house, Heidi’s practice focused on regulatory matters, government and internal investigations, and crisis management at WilmerHale. Her global practice included representation of high-profile companies in connection with inquiries conducted by Congress, the Department of Justice, Securities and Exchange Commission, UK Serious Fraud Office, and other U.S. and international agencies.

Throughout her legal career Heidi has dedicated significant hours to helping those in need as pro bono counsel including women's rights, LGBTQ+ rights, asylum, and bond and bail reform matters. Heidi received her JD and LLM from the University of Denver. Prior to law school, she worked as an instructor for Costa Rica Outward Bound where she led cross-country treks, raft trips, and surf camps. She is fluent in Spanish.

Heidi is passionate about the outdoors—her favorite activities include backcountry skiing, rafting, and mountain biking. She also serves on the Colorado Fourteeners Initiative board.

Micah Dawson
Admissions and Outreach Committee

Micah is a Partner in Fisher Phillips’ Denver office who advises employers on how to comply with state and federal regulations and develop the best corporate practices and policies.

Micah has significant experience litigating on behalf of national and international employers in state and federal courts across the country and has successfully tried cases in both jury and bench proceedings.  He also represents veterans on a pro bono basis and has successfully appealed claims before the US Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims and the Federal Circuit.   

Micah is a regular speaker at industry conferences, continuing legal education seminars, and client trainings, and has presented on nearly every labor and employment issue companies routinely face.  An avid researcher and writer, Micah’s work has also appeared in various publications.

Originally from the Western Slope of Colorado, Micah earned his bachelor’s degree with honors from the University of Chicago in 2007 and his law degree from Boston College Law School in 2010. 

Jennifer H. Weddle
Past President
Admissions and Outreach Committee

Jennifer H. Weddle, obtained her law degree from Harvard Law School and her undergraduate degree from the University of Michigan.  She is a partner with the firm of Greenberg Traurig where she is the Co-Chair of the firm's national American Indian Law Practice and has wide-ranging experience in complex regulatory and jurisdictional issues, with a focus in Indian law, handling a variety of matters for tribal and non-tribal clients.  Jennifer has broad trial and appellate litigation experience, including tribal court and U.S. Supreme Court experience, and frequently litigates jurisdictional issues. She is also experienced in sovereign models for consumer lending and energy development.  Jennifer assists tribes, banks and non-bank entities with financing and regulatory matters with Indian law components.  Jennifer is very active in the community. She currently serves as President of the National Native American Bar Association, and is past Chair of the Federal Bar Association Indian Law Section, past president of the Colorado Indian Bar Association, and also past Chair of the board for the Center for Legal Inclusiveness.   She is a board member of the Law360 Native American Editorial Advisory Board and the Secretary for Colorado Open Lands.  She also serves on the American Bar Association Advisory Commission to the Standing Committee on the Law Library of Congress. She has also served in leadership roles for both the Colorado Bar Association and the Denver Bar Association.

“Sí, Se Puede” is a phrase born of farmworkers, who, under the leadership of the UFW, César Chávez, and Dolores Huerta, fought valiantly for equal protection under the law.  As a result of the efforts of the UFW, “Sí, Se Puede” has become well known as a call that engenders hope and inspiration in those who face similar battles. We thank the UFW, whom we acknowledge to be the sole and exclusive owner of the Trademark SI SE PUEDE, for granting us a limited license to use“Sí, Se Puede” in connection with our efforts to recruit, in Colorado, students of Hispanic or Latino descent for our law school pipeline program. For more information about the programs offered by the UFW, please see UFW’s webpage (www.ufw.org); UFW Foundation’s webpage (www.ufwfoundation.org); and UFWF’s immigration services webpage (www.sisepuede.org)