About Us
The University of Denver Water Law Review is an internationally circulated, semi-annual publication that serves as a high-quality forum for the exchange of ideas, information, and legal and policy analyses concerning water law.
First published in 1997, the Water Law Review is a practical resource for lawyers, policy makers, and students. Our continued involvement in the water law community allows us to stay current on developing water issues. Every issue includes up to date articles on developing water law issues, as well as several other useful and interesting resources such as biographies of water practitioners, book notes, conference reports, and coverage of water cases from all U.S. federal and state courts.
The Water Law Review is a student run journal. Students are responsible for the production of the journal, from the solicitation of articles to the final content editing and publishing. Students gain valuable experience in legal research, writing, management, and water law from their involvement on the Water Law Review.
Mission Statement
The Water Law Review seeks to provide a unique, high quality forum for sharing ideas, information, legal analyses and policy analyses concerning water law issues. It is the intent of the editorial board and staff to make the Review a valuable resource for the practitioner, the scholar and the policy maker.
The Review primarily emphasizes water law issues; however, we understand that nothing exists in isolation, neither in law nor in nature. Therefore, it is the express policy of the Review to solicit and to publish scholarly works that discuss water law as it affects and is affected by related areas, legal or otherwise. To that end, we remain pleased to present articles by nationally recognized experts, practitioners, officials, scholars, and others involved in the fields of water law and water planning.
We do not restrict the Review’s coverage to any one jurisdiction. We live in a highly complex global community where water remains one of the most critical components. The more ideas and information we share, the more successful we will be when managing today’s problems and tomorrow’s challenges. Therefore, we invite our readers to submit articles that address the full range of issues in water law and water management from any geographical location.
Editorial Board
Allison Pofit Altaras
Editor-in-Chief
Allison Pofit Altaras is delighted to serve as Volume 16 Editor-in-Chief of the Denver Water Law Review. Originally from upstate New York, Allison lived in New Orleans for 7 years and received her BA in English from Tulane University. Eventually tiring of the heat and humidity (but never the food), Allison and her husband Matthew, an attorney, moved to Denver in 2010. Allison’s interests include backcountry skiing, equestrian sports, learning percussion instruments, and writing amateur science fiction with her dad, Joe. Allison looks forward to starting her career in natural resources law by clerking in the chambers of the Hon. Justice Gregory J. Hobbs, Jr. of the Colorado Supreme Court after she graduates.
Gregory Cowan
Managing Editor
Gregory Cowan is a big fan of the Journal and is glad to support its mission as a Managing Editor. Hailing from South Dakota, Gregory made a beeline for Colorado after high school and spent the next 10 years embodying the western ethos: skiing, kayaking, going to music festivals, working as a raft guide, running dogsled tours, servicing seaplanes, doing occasional trade work, and brewing beer. Somewhere in there, Gregory earned a BS in Geography from Portland State University. Never one to take himself too seriously, Gregory currently enjoys earning smiles and chuckles from his little girl by acting silly.
Elisabeth Hutchinson
Managing Editor
Elisabeth (Liz) Hutchinson serves as a Managing Editor of the University of Denver Water Law Review. Originally from the Bay Area, Liz attended the University of California at Davis on a NCAA Division I women’s rowing scholarship, and graduated with honors in International Relations with an emphasis in Global Environment, Health, and Natural Resources. Prior to attending law school, Liz returned to her alma mater, Presentation High School, to teach Social Justice and to serve as Director of the Community Involvement Program. Since beginning law school, Liz has been fortunate enough to intern with Judge John L. Kane of the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado, Native American Rights Fund in Anchorage, Alaska, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and the U.S. Department of Interior. All experiences have affirmed Liz’s passion for natural resources law, and she looks forward to beginning her legal career as a clerk to Judge John Webb on the Colorado Court of Appeals. Liz lives in Golden with her husband, John. On most weekends, Liz and John can be found riding their bikes, supporting the Colorado High School Cycling League, snowboarding, or camping.
Matthew Watson
Production Editor
Matthew Watson is indulging his love of layout and design by serving as Production editor. After earning a BA in English from the University of Denver, he returned to his alma mater to focus on transactional law, both environment-related and more business-focused. Raised in Littleton, and a fan of all things Coloradan, Matthew enjoys camping and hiking, and often spends evenings swing dancing in Denver.
Jonathan King
Symposium Editor
Jonathan King is excited to serve as the 2013 University of Denver Water Law Review Symposium Editor. A native of the Roaring Fork Valley, Jonathan headed east and earned his BA in political science at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee. Jonathan has spent significant time rafting and kayaking on the Colorado River through Colorado, Utah, and Arizona, and two winters spent down in Chile solidified his interest in water issues and his decision to study natural resources at DU Law. During the summer of 2012, Jonathan served as a legal intern for the Colorado River Water Conservation District, and upon graduation he aspires to practice water law here in Colorado.
Emily Lande
Business Editor
Emily Lande is re-upping her contract as Business Editor for the Water Law Review for a second year (sadly sans raise). Originally from Portland, Oregon, she comes to Denver by way of Pennsylvania (for undergrad) and four years in the D.C. swamp. A former staffer with the House Natural Resources Committee, she is pursuing a dual JD/MPP with a concentration in environmental law. She is happy to report that her schooling is, in fact, almost complete. When not hitting the books she is most often found cooking for her friends, playing soccer, or enjoying a tasty beer in her backyard hammock.
Joseph Norris
Court Reports Editor
As a Colorado native and third-year law student at the Sturm College of Law, Joseph Norris is serving as your Court Report Editor for the Denver Water Law Review alongside Johna Varty. Joseph obtained a bachelors degree in civil engineering from Kansas State University with a focus in the areas of hydrology, storm water management, and water treatment. Joseph enjoys golfing, overnight backpacking trips throughout Colorado, listening to his dad’s old classic rock vinyl record collection and attending Rockies games (including the first game ever at Coors Field). Joseph is looking forward to pursuing a career in water law in furtherance of his engineering background after graduation.
Johna Varty
Court Reports Editor
Johna Varty is excited to serve as one of Volume 16’s Court Reports Editors. Growing up in sunny San Diego California, Johna became acquainted with water issues at quite a young age when her mother was elected to be president of her local water district. While going to college in Santa Barbara, Johna discovered her love of rock climbing and hiking. After earning her BA in Political Science from the University of California at Santa Barbara, Johna returned to San Diego for a few years in order to be closer to her family. The call of the mountains proved inescapable however, so in 2010 after a summer volunteering in Haiti and Peru, Johna moved to Colorado in order start law school and explore the Rockies. Johna’s interests include body surfing, rock climbing, hiking with friends and family, snowshoeing, road biking, building furniture with her dad, and snowboarding (badly). Johna looks forward to starting her career as an environmental and water lawyer as well as learning how to ski, but is not looking forward to giving up her funky snowboarding wardrobe.
Sarah Barth
Articles Editor
Article Editor Sarah Barth hails from the Pacific Northwest where she grew up surrounded by all things green and wild. She eventually moved to New York City and spent several years there before returning to the left coast. Sarah received her BA in Social Sciences from Washington State University while pursuing a career in commercial escrow and title insurance. Sarah's interests include her two crazy fun dogs, visual arts, camping, and seeing as much live music as possible. In addition to her role with the WLR, Sarah will be spending this year furthering her interest in environmental and natural resources law as a student attorney in the Environmental Law Clinic.
Jessica Bidgood Brauer
Articles Editor
Jessica Bidgood Brauer is serving as an Article Editor for Volume 16. This is her third year as a member of the Denver Water Law Review. Jessica is a Colorado native whose interest in natural resources was inspired by her father, an exploration geologist. Jessica enjoys skiing with her husband and walking half-marathons with her mom. Her newest athletic adventure is stand up paddle boarding. Jessica earned her BA in Environmental Studies with an emphasis in Western water resources from the University of Colorado at Boulder, and she looks forward to pursuing a career in natural resource litigation after graduation.
Jonathan Culwell
Article Editor
Jonathan Culwell is a Colorado native, born in Ft. Collins and raised in Denver. He lived in Boulder for eight years, where he received his BA in English and Communication from the University of Colorado. After brokering listed securities for executives and directors of large corporations with Charles Schwab, Jonathan recognized his calling as a lawyer. Jonathan's interests include cultivating bonsai, back country skiing, racquetball, and cooking. His work in transactional advocacy for Acequias in the San Luis Valley has been formative, informative, and highly satisfying.
Kelly Delaney
Article Editor
Kelly Delaney will be serving as one of the Water Law Review’s Article Editors for Volume 16. A native of Houston, TX, Kelly received her BBA in finance and real estate from the University of Wisconsin – Madison. After graduating, Kelly made the move to Denver to pursue her interests in a legal education as well as outdoor activities including hiking, biking, fishing and snowboarding. Kelly intends to pursue a career in which she can utilize her combined interests in business and real estate law ideally with a Denver law firm specializing in corporate, business, or land use law.
Jessica Zaegel
Article Editor
Jessica Zaegel is an article editor for the Denver Water Law Review. Jessica is from West Des Moines, Iowa, and attended college at Truman State University in Missouri. Using her BA in Psychology, Jessica worked with adults with Autism in Saint Louis for two years. She moved to Denver to attend law school and pursue her favorite mountain activites: snowboarding and hiking. Jessica enjoys spending time with John, her accountant husband, and their dog, Dylan. Additionally, she plays soccer, likes to sew and paint, and cheers for the St. Louis Cardinals. Currently, Jessica is a law clerk at Foster Graham Milstein & Calisher.
Amy Kho
Online Content Editor
Amy Wegner Kho is excited to help the Water Law Review develop its online presence through the blog. Raised on a working cattle ranch in southeastern Oregon, Amy loves being outside, and has an intimate understanding of the importance of water in agriculture. Amy received her B.A. and M.A. in English from Boise State University, and continued to develop her love of writing afterwards as a journalist. Now she keeps busy balancing her time between law school, her family, working full time, and writing about the West.
Tom I. Romero, II
Faculty Advisor
Professor Romero teaches and researches in the areas of the legal history of the American West, Latinos and the law, school desegregation in multiracial contexts, property, land use, water law, and urban development and local government in the United States and Latin America. His work on such topics have appeared in the Colorado Law Review, the Utah Law Review, the New Mexico Law Review, the Albany Law Review, the Journal of Gender, Race, and Justice, the Temple Political and Civil Rights Law Review, the Seattle Journal for Social Justice, the Oregon Review of International Law, and the Chicano-Latino Law Review, among others. His most recent scholarship can be found here. Professor Romero recently published an article on the relationship between Water law and Critical Race Theory in the Denver University Water Law Review which is being re-published in the University of Miami Race and Social Justice Law Review. Currently, Dr. Romero is revising a book manuscript on multiracial formation and the law in post-World War II Denver, Colorado; where among other aspect of the analysis, he extensively explores the role of metropolitan water development in Keyes v. School Board No. One, 413 US 189 (1973) (the first non-Southern school desegregation case to reach the United States Supreme Court). In addition, Dr. Romero is collaborating with the Sturm College of Law’s Community Economic Development Clinic to modernize the corporate documents of acequia associations working in the San Luis Valley of Colorado.
2012-2013 Staff
Source Editor
Aubrey Markson
Senior Staff Editors
Andrea Aguilera-Moreno
Leigh Auerbach
Ryan Coyne
Gerard Deffenbaugh
Tyler Geisert
Alan Kitchen
Michael Lerch
Patrick Peluso
Anthony Perko
Darin Smith
Robert Sykes
Winslow Taylor
Lauren Varner
Jacob Watterson
Jessica Weis
Staff Editors
Jenna Anderson
Alex Besong
Koley Borchard
Aaron Brunskill
Everette (Rob) Bullard
Christopher Butler
Sarah Cassinis
Ashley Jackson
Lauren Joseph
Alexander Louden
Shannon Love
Skylar Marshall
Andrew McFadden
Sarah McGrath
Emily Murphy
Christine Romo
David (Austin) Rueschhoff
Natalia Schissler
Christopher Stevens
Christopher Stork
Holly Taylor
Adam Thiessen
William (Davis) Wert
Advisory Board
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Amy Beatie
Executive Director
Colorado Water Trust
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William H. Caile, Esq.
Holland & Hart
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James Corbridge
Professor
University of Colorado, School of Law
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John J. Cyran
First Assistant Attorney General
Water Resources Unit, Colorado Office of Attorney General
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John M. Dingess, Esq.
Duncan, Ostrander & Dingess, PC
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Harrison C. Dunning
Professor
University of California at Davis School of Law
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David Hallford, Esq.
Balcomb & Green, PC
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Jim Lochhead
CEO/Manager
Denver Water
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David Robbins, Esq.
Hill & Robbins, PC
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Susan Ryan, Esq.
Ryley, Carlock & Applewhite
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Janice Sheftel, Esq.
Bradford, Shipps & Sheftel, LLP
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A. Dan Tarlock
Professor
Chicago–Kent School of Law Illinois Institute of Technology
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Jason Turner, Esq.
Associate Counsel
Colorado River Water Conservation District
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Dick Wolfe, P.E.
State Engineer
Colorado Division of Water Resources
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Dr. Patricia Wouters
IWRA Board of Directors
Director, Water Law and Policy Programme, University of Dundee, Scotland