Practice Areas

  • Crisis Management
  • Healthcare
  • Labor & Employment
  • Litigation
  • Medical Malpractice
  • Professional Liability
  • Retail, Restaurants & Hospitality

Admissions

  • Colorado
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
  • U.S. District Court of Colorado

Michelle L. Harden

COO & Managing Partner

Phone: 303-623-1800
Email: mharden@messner.com
Office: Denver

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BackgroundEducation & HonorsAwardsAssociations

Michelle Harden is COO and Managing Partner at Messner Reeves LLP. A former nurse, Michelle has extensive experience in defending catastrophic injury cases and multi-district, multi-plaintiff personal injury cases.  She has significantly focused her practice on representation of physicians and other health care professionals as well as healthcare entities. In addition to a very active litigation and trial practice, she frequently represents health care providers in matters involving the Colorado Medical Board, the Board of Nursing, and other credentialing entities, and represents these providers in administrative law hearings.  Beyond litigation, she serves as a trusted advisor to many clients on a wide variety of topics and acts as general counsel to several entities.  She has received numerous awards and recognitions, including 5280 Magazine Top Lawyers, Super Lawyers and US News & World Report Best Lawyers and was awarded the Colorado Trial Lawyers Association Professionalism Award in 2020 and was named a Notable Woman in Law by BizWest Colorado in 2021.  Michelle has maintained the AV Preeminent Rating by Martindale Hubbell since 2014.  She has served on various boards and is currently the President of the Zarlengo Foundation Board and a member of the Denver Broncos’ Javonte Williams Foundation Board.

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  • University of Colorado, J.D. 2005
  • Colorado Christian University, B.S. 2001, magna cum laude
  • Colorado Super Lawyers:  Rising Star 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017, Super Lawyer 2018-2023
  • 5280 Magazine Top Lawyers: 2016-2023
  • US News & World Report Best Lawyers in America: 2022-2024
  • Martindale Hubbell AV Preeminent Rating 2014-2023
  • BizWest Colorado – Notable Women in Law 2021.
  • CTLA Professionalism Award: 2020
  • Colorado Super Lawyers Top 50 Women: 2023
  • American Bar Association
  • Colorado Bar Association, Health Law and Litigation Sections
  • American Health Lawyers Association
  • International Association for Food Protection
  • The Federalist Society
  • National Retail and Restaurant Defense Association (NRRDA)
  • CLM
  • DRI
  • CDLA
  • Center for Legal Inclusiveness
Professional Experience

Extern, Governor Bill Owens, Spring 2005

Learn More About Our Capabilities

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Learn how we’ve grown over the past 25 years.

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Messner Reeves LLP
1550 Wewatta St. Suite 710
Denver, CO 80202
Phone: (303) 623-1800.