Biography
Marsha is a seasoned trial and appellate lawyer and Co-Chair of the firm’s Appellate Practice Group. A former judge on the Colorado Court of Appeals, she has served as lead trial and appellate counsel in high-stakes litigation involving multimillion-dollar claims.
Businesses of all sizes rely on Marsha to navigate their most complex legal problems through trial and appeal in state and federal courts throughout the country. She is frequently asked to consult on trial strategy, appeals and complex legal briefing. She centers her practice on cases involving complex commercial disputes, product liability, and torts . Marsha has a particular depth of experience in defending consumer product companies in cases involving vaccines, medical devices, pharmaceuticals and manufacturing. She also serves as an arbitrator in commercial disputes.
As an appellate judge, Marsha authored more than 200 opinions and served on three-judge panels deciding hundreds of other civil and criminal cases involving complex and novel legal concepts. Her experience as a judge and her years of practice as a trial and appellate lawyer have made her a respected and trusted resource for professionals and businesses involved in complex litigation.
Representative Matters
- Secured reinstatement of a $100+ million arbitration award in the Colorado Court of Appeals on behalf of a co-founder of a cannabis company.
- Defended a hospital before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, securing a precedential opinion in a case brought under the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Rehabilitation Act, Affordable Care Act and California’s Unruh Act.
- Vacated a $6.5 million attorneys’ fees award stemming from a construction defect arbitration in a developer’s appeal to the Colorado Court of Appeals. Successfully defended against a petition for certiorari review by the Colorado Supreme Court.
- Represented a federal research and development lab in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, successfully defending a summary judgment dismissal of federal and state discrimination and retaliation claims.
Beyond Fox Rothschild
For more than a decade, Marsha has served as Chair of the Colorado Supreme Court’s Committee on Pattern Civil Jury Instructions. She was named to the committee in 2004 and was appointed by the Supreme Court to lead it in 2008. As chair, she heads a team of attorneys who research, draft, update and publish the pattern jury instructions used in all Colorado civil jury trials.
Marsha is a former editor of the Defense Counsel Journal, a publication of the International Association of Defense Counsel that serves as a forum for topical and scholarly writings on the law, its development and reform, and on the practice of law.
Bar Admissions
- Colorado
Court Admissions
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Tenth Circuit
- U.S. District Court, District of Colorado
- U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Texas
- U.S. District Court, Southern District of Texas
Education
- University of Colorado, School of Law (J.D., 1985)
- Member, University of Colorado Law Review
- University of Colorado–Boulder (B.S., with honors, 1982)
Memberships
- Colorado Supreme Court Committee on Pattern Civil Jury Instructions
- Chair (2008-Present)
- Member (2004-Present)
- American Arbitration Association
- Panel Member
- American Bar Foundation
- Fellow
- Colorado Bar Association
- Board of Governors, Denver Bar Association Representative (former)
- Colorado Bar Foundation, Fellow
- American, Colorado, Denver, Arapahoe County and Colorado Women’s Bar Associations
- Denver Bar Association
- Board of Trustees (former member)
- International Association of Defense Counsel
- Former Editor, Defense Counsel Journal
- Defense Research Institute
Honors & Awards
- Selected to the list of "Denver's Top Lawyers" for Appellate by 5280 Magazine (2018-2024)
- Selected to the "Best Lawyers in America" list for Appellate Practice (2011-2013, 2019-2026), Commercial Litigation (2020-2026) and Product Liability Litigation – Defendants (2013, 2021-2026) in Denver, CO by Best Lawyers
- Top Lawyers of Denver, Denver Post (2016)
- Selected to the "Super Lawyers" list for Appellate Law in Colorado by Super Lawyers (2007-2011, 2021-2023, 2025)
- Martindale-Hubbell® AV Preeminent™ Peer Review Rated
Community Involvement
- Presidential Search Committee, Alumni Representative, University of Colorado (2005-2006)
- General Counsel Search Committee, Alumni Representative, University of Colorado (2007)
- Volunteer Mediator, Jefferson County Mediation Services (May 2018 - June 2019)
- Our Courts Colorado, High School Program 2019, Judicial Selection in Colorado, Volunteer (2019)
- American Brain Tumor Association 5K, Planning Committee (2019)
- Colorado Easter Seals Board of Directors (1999-2000)
