About Us
Mission and Vision
The Colorado Poverty Law Project's mission is to prevent homelessness through legal representation, education, and advocacy.
Our Vision: We believe that no one should become homeless for lack of access to housing justice.
How to Get Help
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Would like to request free legal assistance for a housing-related issue? Filling out an intake form is the most effective way to connect with us for support.
Meet the Team
Shannon MacKenzie
Executive Director, CPLP
Shannon is a former teacher and a civil rights attorney specializing in disability law. She uses her training as a trauma-informed practitioner to ensure that every client is treated with dignity and provided with exceptional service.
Contact Shannon at shannon@copovertylawproject.org
Jack Regenbogen
Deputy Executive Director, CPLP
Jack Regenbogen is Deputy Executive Director at Colorado Poverty Law Project. With expertise in evictions, landlord-tenant law, mobile home park policy, and affordable housing, Jack is responsible for developing and supporting policies to improve the housing security of low-income Coloradans. Jack also assists with CPLP's administrative and developmental functions. Jack earned his J.D. from University of Pennsylvania Law School in 2015 and a bachelor’s degree from Colorado College in 2012.
Contact Jack with questions about advocacy and policy initiatives (Jack@copovertylawproject.org)
David Valleau
Housing Attorney, CPLP
Mobile Home Initiative Team Leader
David is a driving force behind the organization’s Mobile Home Initiative, and uses his in-depth knowledge of Colorado’s Mobile Home Park Act to lead Know-Your-Rights trainings and provide pro bono legal guidance and representation for mobile home park residents.
“It's often said that there are no rights without remedy. While the Mobile Home Park Act gives many rights to mobile home residents, those rights are meaningless without access to justice. Taken a step further, these rights mean nothing if mobile home residents are unaware of them. That is what I see as CPLP’s purpose. We educate residents about their rights and facilitate access to justice and representation so residents can fulfill the rights provided to them by the Colorado legislature.”
Contact David for inquires about CPLP’s Mobile Home Initiative (david@copovertylawproject.org)
Lauren Rafter
Managing Attorney, CPLP
Young Adult Team Leader
Lauren's background is in working with young adults who have experienced trauma on a variety of legal and multidisciplinary issues and representing the best interests of children in civil protection order cases. She is the Intake Coordinator at CPLP, working to ensure every individual seeking legal support feels heard and empowered to take the next necessary steps
“Safe and stable housing is integral in building a foundation upon which to thrive for people of all ages, and far too many people in our community are without that or at risk of losing that. CPLP steps in--meeting people where they are at--to address the crises they are facing. We also work with community partners through education, policy, and legislation to stop those same crises from happening to others in the future so that one day soon all of our neighbors in Colorado may be free from the trauma of experiencing homelessness.”
Contact Lauren with questions about CPLP's young adult program (lauren@copovertylawproject.org)
Olivia Kohrs
Managing Attorney, CPLP
Olivia uses her background in civil rights to inform how she provides client-centered legal guidance and resources to individuals fighting evictions.
"Too often the members of our community most intimately impacted by our complex legal systems do not have the resources or aid to participate fully or confidently in them. CPLP provides community members with both the tools and the support to engage in these systems and advocate for their rights. By expanding access to justice and working to amplify community members' voices in these spaces, we can help individuals who are fighting for their homes feel heard and empowered, and let them know that they have someone in their corner."
Contact Olivia with questions about getting legal assistance (Olivia@copovertylawproject.org)
Andrea Worcester
Paralegal, CPLP
Andrea is our intake paralegal and Spanish interpreter. Growing up in Colorado, Andrea has seen the population of the unhoused community grow with very little assistance being offered. Finding CPLP has given Andrea the avenue to help people access housing justice. As the intake paralegal and often first point of contact, Andrea compassionately offers assistance and resources to help members feel safe to share their story.
Contact Andrea with questions about getting legal assistance (Andrea@copovertylawproject.org)
Adam Rice
Housing Attorney, CPLP
Adam is a Housing Attorney at CPLP. In addition to his deep commitment to housing justice, he brings to CPLP experience in fair housing, community economic development, consumer protection, and public policy making. Before joining CPLP, Adam worked at the Colorado Department of Law and served as Counsel to Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser. Previously, Adam was an elementary school teacher in Newark, New Jersey.
Contact Adam with questions about fair housing (Adam@copovertylawproject.org)
Maria Sierra
Housing Navigator, CPLP
Maria holds a B.A. in Chicano Studies and Human Services and has served the Denver community for over 25 years. Her work is focused on low income housing, nonprofits, education, and community advocacy. Maria firmly believes her lived experience brings a unique understanding to the struggle many in our underserved communities face. Maria believes that engaging the community and connecting through shared experiences fosters relationships. These relationships build resilience and create opportunity to share resources and knowledge of complex systems. Maria is hopeful that she will be able to see her city, and the people living in it, not struggle to meet the basic needs of their families. She also hopes for opportunities for families to truly experience life and not just navigate through their struggles.
Contact Maria for questions about housing navigation (Maria@copovertylawproject.org)
Idali Rodriguez
Intake and Administrative Coordinator, CPLP
Idali holds a B.A. in Cultural Anthropology and minored in Political Science and Legal Studies. Idali first started with us as an intern during the Spring semester of 2022. She is now working diligently to provide resources and connect tenants to the appropriate legal support. She is passionate about social justice topics and hopes to one day become an attorney. Idali was most recently a fellow of the Law School Yes We Can Program.
Contact Idali for questions about obtaining legal assistance (Idali@copovertylawproject.org)
Ellen Lee
Development and Grants Manager, CPLP
As Development and Grants Manager, Ellen is passionate about communicating CPLP’s mission and impact to donors. Prior to joining CPLP, Ellen spent several years fundraising for human services organizations. Ellen holds an MA in Arts Management from Carnegie Mellon University.
Contact Ellen for questions about donations (ellen@copovertylawproject.org)
Ericka Welsh
Housing Attorney, CPLP
Ericka comes to CPLP with a varied background in public interest work, having served as an advocate for incarcerated individuals seeking post-conviction relief, immigrant families, refugees and asylum-seekers, and victims and offenders seeking access to restorative justice. As a housing attorney, Ericka aims to provide compassionate, human-centered legal support to CPLP clients and help them obtain meaningful justice that meets their needs.
Contact Ericka for questions about obtaining legal assistance (ericka@copovertylawproject.org)
Kathia Castro Gonzalez
Community Navigator, CPLP
As Community Navigator, Kathia is pursuing her commitment to advocating for marginalized communities and amplifying the voices of individuals who have felt silence. Through CPLP she is able to provide and facilitate spaces in which individuals can learn, be empowered and become self-reliant in regards to housing. Prior to CPLP she worked in the education system working towards making her school an equitable space for all students and parents.
Contact Kathia for questions about community programs (kathia@copovertylawproject.org)
Deborah Mayer
Housing Attorney, CPLP
Debbie is a Housing Attorney with CPLP and is focusing on the development of CPLP services in Larimer County. Prior to joining CPLP, Debbie was the Employee Housing Programs Coordinator for Colorado State University and is a former staff attorney with The Center for Nonprofit Legal Services in Medford Oregon where she represented low-income tenants at risk of displacement. For many years she has been involved with nonprofit advocacy work promoting housing, health, and economic justice.
Contact Deborah for questions about obtaining legal assistance (deborah@copovertylawproject.org)
Ariane Frosh
Housing Attorney, CPLP
With a background in gender and reproductive justice, Ariane brings a client-centric and intersectional approach to her housing justice work at CPLP. Born and raised in Denver, Ariane is passionate about amplifying access to justice for the state’s most marginalized groups and believes that safe and secure housing is a foundational right of all Coloradans. Before law school, Ariane worked for Senator Michael Bennet and in the Obama Administration and clerked at the Colorado Court of Appeals prior to joining CPLP. Ariane earned her J.D. from the University of Colorado Law School and her bachelor’s degree from Beloit College.
Contact Ariane for questions about obtaining legal assistance (ariane@copovertylawproject.org)
Rebecca Orton
Housing Attorney Fellow, CPLP
Rebecca (Becca) Orton is a Housing Attorney Fellow focusing on Fair Housing. She entered law school after working for nearly a decade as a joker/facilitator and founding member of Theatre of the Oppressed NYC, where she worked with communities to make interactive plays about real stories of injustice and saw firsthand the importance of access to housing. As a law student intern, Becca worked at Community Legal Services of Philadelphia in the Housing Unit and at the Federal Community Defender for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. Becca holds a J.D. from the University of Pennsylvania Law School and a B.A. in theatre arts from the University of Southern California.
Contact Rebecca for questions about obtaining legal assistance (rebecca@copovertylawproject.org)
Carol Kennedy
Housing Attorney, CPLP
Before working as a housing attorney at CPLP, Carol clerked for two Denver District Court judges. Using her knowledge of the trial court, Carol offers strategic and thoughtful legal support to clients facing eviction. Carol is passionate about this work because she believes that stable housing provides a necessary foundation that allows people to thrive. She also understands the important role compassionate advocacy plays in favorably resolving housing disputes.
Contact Carol for questions about obtaining legal assistance (carol@copovertylawproject.org)
Tabitha Hererra
Housing Attorney, CPLP
Tabitha is a Housing Attorney with CPLP. Tabitha earned her law degree from Florida State University and has been an attorney for over five years. Housing is a crucial part of the ability to be successful and live the American dream, and Tabitha is passionate about helping people navigate the court system. Tabitha speaks English and Spanish and one day hopes to learn Japanese.
Contact Tabitha for questions about obtaining legal assistance (tabitha@copovertylawproject.org).
Caitlin Finn
Founder and Chief Operating Officer, CPLP
VP of Finance & Admin, General Counsel, Concept3D
After graduating law school in 2014, Caitlin became CPLP’s first employee. Drawing on her deep roots in Denver and her skills as a network builder, Caitlin has forged strong relationships with key stakeholders and helped position CPLP as an important player in Denver’s pro bono ecosystem.
“Bryan Stevenson often discusses the importance of proximity. Proximity is so important because if you’re not in contact with the things you’re passionate about, the causes you believe in, and the people you want to help, then you lose sight of why you’re doing it. You lose sight of who you are doing it for. So I think it’s super important, especially as attorneys, that we remember why we went to law school. A client once said to me ‘Thank you for advocating for me. Thanks for standing up for me. You believed in me, and no one else has before.’ Sometimes it’s just showing up with someone and walking through a portion of their life with them that matters.”
Contact Caitlin for partnership inquiries (caitlin@copovertylawproject.org)
Blair Kanis
Founder and Vice President, CPLP
General Counsel and Director of Sustainability, Cocona Labs
Blair founded CPLP with Tom Snyder in 2013 to provide vulnerable Coloradans with legal representation through monthly pro bono legal clinics. As the leader of CPLP’s Mobile Home Initiative, Blair works to clarify and strengthen protections afforded by Colorado’s Mobile Home Park Act and guides CPLP’s pro bono work in the area of mobile home evictions and tenant rights.
“I had a very clear sense of home growing up. My dad’s family had lived for generations on the farm where I grew up. But I realize that this situation is the outlier in America. That’s where this idea of housing justice really took hold for me. If you don't have safe and stable housing, you can’t build a strong, healthy, happy life. If you lose your housing, it’s like unraveling this web that everything was connected to. You don't have an address to send things to anymore. You are probably not living close to your job anymore. Your kids aren't in the same school or you may lose custody altogether. But if you can hold on, and stay in your housing, that provides the stability to hopefully keep the rest together.”
Contact Blair with inquiries about CPLP’s Mobile Home Initiative (blair@copovertylawproject.org)
Tom Snyder
Founder and President, CPLP
Partner, Kutak Rock LLP
Drawing on his expertise as a trial attorney, Tom serves as an advisor on litigation and legal strategy for CPLP volunteers. He is instrumental in the creation of CPLP’s Continuing Legal Education courses, and regularly provides pro bono services to CPLP clients on a range of housing justice issues.
"Advocating for these individuals is extremely rewarding. To interview somebody, coalesce their circumstances into a single legal issue, summarize it for them to show that you understand, carry that to a court or an adversary, and resolve the problem which seemed so impossible to them, it’s really powerful and true to the occupation of an attorney."
Contact Tom with inquires about Continuing Legal Education courses (thomas.snyder@kutakrock.com)
Lisa Scalpone
Chief Financial Officer, CPLP
Lisa Scalpone is a technology executive who joined CPLP’s board to provide financial and administrative guidance as the organization entered a period of sustained growth.
Her strong background in corporate law and business strategy enables the team to maximize its work with clients in need.
“One could argue helping people stay in their homes is one of the most fundamental things you can do for a person. Our mental stability and our happiness is closely linked to having a place to go home to every night. It's a truly scary prospect to be faced with an eviction court proceeding all alone. CPLP provides that safety net so our fellow community members in need are not alone. You are with someone the whole way, who knows the law and who wants to help you. I'm proud to be a part of such an important organization.
Kevin M. McGreevy
Senior Advisor, CPLP
Criminal Defense, Ridley, McGreevy, Winocur
Kevin worked for six years as a public defender in Denver before joining a private firm, and has the honor of being CPLP’s first board member. He has utilized his experience as a litigator to guide many vulnerable Colordans through legal challenges over the years and regularly volunteers at CPLP’s monthly legal clinic.
“There are a lot of reasons I think people should care about the Colorado Poverty Law Project, but most of them boil down to this one basic thing. It makes our community stronger. Caring for one another, making sure all who are subjected to the justice system have someone that can give them access to resources or an understanding of where they are so they are not mistreated. Even if you are vulnerable, uneducated, or suffering from mental illness, we’re not going to allow for exploitation of those issues in our justice system. It just builds our community as a whole.”
Partners
CPLP is grateful to all the partners who make our work possible, including donors who support our work, volunteers who give their time, service providers with whom we collaborate, and community organizations that help us reach and support those in need of assistance.
Colorado’s Eviction Legal Defense Fund helps support CPLP’s Just Housing Initiative. The Just Housing Initiative expands access to housing justice for vulnerable tenants through education and volunteer pro bono representation to defend against evictions and help with other housing issues.
In 2020, CPLP launched a pilot program of its Mobile Home Initiative in partnership with Adams County, which has the highest concentration of mobile homes in Colorado.
In 2019, the Colorado Health Foundation provided critical funding for CPLP’s Just Housing Initiative.
Continuing support from the Colorado Health Foundation in 2020 has allowed CPLP to work toward statewide expansion of its Mobile Home Initiative in 2021.
Kutak Rock has been an indispensable partner in CPLP’s growth. The firm’s lawyers have provided countless hours volunteering, both in providing legal support services to CPLP as an organization and in providing advice and representation to the individuals CPLP serves. The firm also has been a consistent financial supporter of CPLP. We are proud and honored by the relentless support of Kutak Rock and its attorneys.
The Denver Foundation also provides important funding for CPLP’s Just Housing Initiative, supporting CPLP’s efforts to provide eviction defense and other legal assistance to individuals and families at risk of losing housing in the Denver metro area.
Legal and Social Service Partners
Our clients often have complex needs that go beyond legal representation or require collaboration between legal service providers. Through our strong relationships with many legal and social service providers in the Front Range and our growing network throughout Colorado, we ensure that each client’s situation is addressed holistically. Partners include:
Community Support Partners
In addition to referrals from service providers, CPLP’s work depends on its strong partnerships in the communities we serve. Like the service providers listed above, the organizations that support us in these community-based partnerships are the unsung heroes. They inform us of critical issues facing residents in their communities, assist with outreach efforts, provide referrals, and so much more.
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Colorado Coalition of Manufactured Home Owners (CoCoMHO)