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William Perry Pendley
Contact William Perry Pendley by E-mail
President and Chief Operating Officer
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| Born and raised in Cheyenne, Wyoming, he received B.A. and M.A. degrees in Economics and Political Science from George Washington University in Washington, D.C. He was a Captain in the United States Marine Corps, after which he received his J.D. from the University of Wyoming College of Law, where he was Senior Editor on Land and Water Law Review. He served as an attorney to former Senator Clifford P. Hansen (R-Wyoming) and to the House Interior and Insular Affairs Committee. During the Reagan Administration, he served as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Energy and Minerals of the Department of Interior, where he authored President Reagan's National Minerals Policy and Exclusive Economic Zone proclamation. He was a consultant to former Secretary of the Navy John F. Lehman, Jr., and was engaged in the private practice of law in the Washington, D.C., area before his return to the West in 1989. He has argued cases before the Supreme Court of the United States as well as various federal courts of appeals; he won what Time called a "legal earthquake" when the Supreme Court ruled in his favor in the historic Adarand (equal protection) case. His monthly column, Summary Judgment, appears throughout the country; he is the author of three books: It Takes A Hero (1994); War on the West (1995); and Warriors for the West (2006). He is admitted to practice law in Wyoming, Colorado, Washington, D.C., and Virginia. |
Steven J. Lechner
Contact Steven J. Lechner by E-mail
Vice President and Chief Legal Officer
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| Mr. Lechner graduated from the Colorado School of Mines with a B.S. in Petroleum Engineering. In 1990, he received his J.D. degree from the University of Colorado. He served as a Staff Attorney with MSLF from January 1991 until March 1998, when he entered the private practice of law. In November 2000, Mr. Lechner rejoined MSLF as Managing Attorney. In 2009, Mr. Lechner became Vice President and Chief Legal Officer. Mr. Lechner’s practice areas include private property rights, oil and gas, mining, public lands, and environmental laws. His published decisions include Mann v. United States, 86 Fed. Cl. 649 (2009), Shuler v. Babbitt, 49 F. Supp. 2d 1165 (D. Mont. 1998), Northwest Min. Ass’n v. Babbitt, 5 F. Supp. 2d 9 (D.D.C. 1998), United States v. Jenks, 129 F.3d 1348 (10th Cir. 1997), and Larson v. Lujan, 976 F.Supp. 1406 (D. Utah 1992). Mr. Lechner is licensed to practice law in State of Colorado and is admitted to practice before, inter alia, the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado, the U.S. Court of Federal Claims, numerous U.S. Courts of Appeals, and the U.S. Supreme Court. |
Janice K. Alvarado
Contact Janice K. Alvarado by E-mail
Vice President of Administration
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| Ms. Alvarado was born and raised in Englewood, Colorado. Employed with Mountain States Legal Foundation since March 1982, she now is responsible for soliciting and responding to major donors; planning and preparing meetings of the Board of Directors and Board of Litigation; and overseeing the upkeep of MSLF’s national headquarters. Ms. Alvarado is an avid fly fisher person and enjoys landscaping and gardening. |
Jaimie N. Cavanaugh
Contact Jaimie N. Cavanaugh by E-mail
Staff Attorney
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| Ms. Cavanaugh, a Michigan native, earned a B.A. in Linguistics, German, and Environmental Science at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Following her graduation she attended University of Colorado Law School, where she was Co-President of the Federalist Society and an Associate Editor for the Colorado Journal of International Environmental Law and Policy. Ms. Cavanaugh received her J.D. in December 2011 and worked as a Judicial Fellow for the Honorable Justice Monica Márquez at the Colorado Supreme Court before joining MSLF. She is admitted to practice law in Colorado.
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Gina Giacopuzzi
Contact Gina Giacopuzzi by E-mail
Staff Attorney
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| Gina Giacopuzzi was born and raised in Lake Arrowhead, CA. In 2008, she received her B.A. in Journalism from Point Loma Nazarene University in San Diego. After graduation, she worked at a small corporate law firm in San Diego as a paralegal and moonlighted for newspapers as a freelance journalist. She returned to school at UCLA School of Law, where she served as an editor for the Journal of International Law and Foreign Affairs and a member of the Moot Court Board. Ms. Giacopuzzi received her J.D. in May 2012 and joined MSLF in October 2012.
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James M. Manley
Contact James M. Manley by E-mail
Staff Attorney
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| Mr. Manley was born and raised near Detroit, Michigan. In 2004, he received a B.A. in Political Science and a B.A. in Journalism from Arizona State University. Before attending law school, he worked for the Goldwater Institute in Phoenix, Arizona, and was a professional ski instructor in Telluride, Colorado. In 2008, he received a J.D. from the University of Colorado Law School, where he served as an Associate Editor of the Law Review and President of the Federalist Society. Mr. Manley joined MSLF in September 2008. He is admitted to practice law in Colorado. |
Jeffrey McCoy
Contact Jeffrey McCoy by E-mail
Staff Attorney
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| Mr. McCoy was raised in Woodland Park, CO. In 2007, he received his B.A. in political science and philosophy from the University of Colorado at Boulder. He returned to the University of Colorado for law school, where he served as an associate editor on the Colorado Journal of International Environmental Law and Policy and as a member of the Rothgerber Moot Court Board. Mr. McCoy received his J.D. in 2011 and joined MSLF in January 2012. He is admitted to practice law in Colorado.
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Jessica Spuhler
Contact Jessica Spuhler by E-mail
Staff Attorney
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| Ms. Spuhler grew up in Glenwood Springs, Colorado. She earned a BA in Anthropology and Archaeology from Washington University in St. Louis and a Master of Public Policy from the University of Denver before attending law school at the University of Colorado at Boulder. While in law school, Ms. Spuhler was an Associate Editor of the Colorado Journal of International and Environmental Law and Policy and a member of the Rothgerber Moot Court Board. She completed a two-year clerkship in Alaska before joining MSLF. Ms. Spuhler is licensed to practice in the State of Colorado.
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