COLORADO - Key Persons
David L. Harrison (born 1945) received his Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering, hydraulics and his law degree from the University of Colorado School of Law. Mr. Harrison was instrumental in the development of Colorado water law concerning complex water rights transfers and plans for augmentation. Mr. Harrison was a member of the Board of Governors of the Nature Conservancy from 1980-1990. From 1990 through 1997, he was a member of the Colorado Water Conservation Board. Mr. Harrison has authored several professional articles on water resource matters focusing on ground water-surface water issues, instream flows and ecosystem management matters. Mr. Harrison has retired from the firm but continues of counsel. He now works as a senior advisor to the Global Freshwater Team of the Nature Conservancy, focusing on ecologically sustainable hydropower at several demonstration projects, including the Yangtze River Basin in China.
Evan Weis joined the firm as a law clerk in February 2023, becoming an Associate Attorney in October 2023. His practice centers on Colorado water rights matters, including litigation, transactions, and municipal planning. Evan graduated from Indiana University in 2020 with a B.A. in History and earned his J.D. from the University of Denver in 2023. Prior to joining Moses Wittemyer, Evan led the University of Denver Water Law Review as a managing editor, and he conducted research in the field of water justice with the University of Denver's Interdisciplinary Research Institute for the Study of (in)Equality. Evan was also the 2023 recipient of the Professor Fred Cheever Environmental and Natural Resources Writing Award. In his free time, Evan enjoys exploring Colorado through backpacking and climbing, as well as playing in folk jams on the banjo.
James R. Montgomery (born 1951) joined the Boulder, Colorado law firm of Moses, Wittemyer, Harrison and Woodruff, P.C. in 1980 with a law degree from the University of Colorado (1980) and a bachelor of arts degree from the Athenaeum of Ohio (1973). His law practice has emphasized municipal water supply planning and implementation, interstate water apportionment, federal reserved water rights, and federal endangered species and environmental protection. He served the State of Wyoming for more than 20 years as Special Assistant Attorney General for interstate water matters. Mr. Montgomery has represented municipal water suppliers in Colorado, working closely with water rights and civil engineers in water supply planning, water rights planning and adjudication. He has adjudicated changes of water rights and complex water exchange plans as part of the implementation of water supply planning efforts for those municipalities. Mr. Montgomery has also represented a national land conservation organization in the conveyance and adjudication of water rights and changes of water rights associated with several land or conservation easement acquisitions in Colorado. He has also assisted ranchers and other individuals in the development, protection and change of their water rights. He has delivered presentations for continuing legal education seminars on basic water rights and interstate water issues.
Jennifer M. DiLalla joined the firm in March 2011. She represents public and private clients in matters involving water court and appellate litigation; water transactions; adjudication and administration of water rights and plans for augmentation; ditch easement issues and associated civil litigation; municipal water planning and other municipal water issues; ground water, water quality, and drainage issues; and federal and state agency actions.
Dr. DiLalla has been named a Rising Star by Colorado Super Lawyers on three occasions. She holds a B.A. in English with Highest Distinction from the University of Virginia, where she also was elected to Phi Beta Kappa; an M.A. and a Ph.D. in English and American Literature from the Johns Hopkins University, where she was a Mellon Fellow in the Humanities; and a J.D. from the University of Colorado School of Law, where she graduated second in her class, was elected to Order of the Coif, and won a number of awards for her writing and her work on the University of Colorado Law Review.
Following law school, Dr. DiLalla clerked for the Honorable David M. Ebel on the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit. Before attending law school, she spent eleven years as a college English professor. She is a former co-chair of the Denver Bar Association's Community Action Network.
Molly Haug-Rengers joined Moses Wittemyer in October 2022. Her practice focuses on water rights litigation and transactions. Molly graduated with a B.S. in Civil Engineering from Marquette University in 2017 and a J.D. from Saint Louis University (SLU) in 2022. While working on her law degree, Molly worked full time as an engineer at the Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District where she focused on environmental compliance for three large wastewater treatment plants. Additionally, she participated in SLU's Human Rights at Home Litigation Clinic through which she assisted in litigating human rights cases in Missouri courts.
Molly enjoys running, hiking, and skiing - and watching the Marquette Golden Eagles basketball teams in the hopes she'll one day see them win a NCAA championship.
Virginia Sargent joined the firm in January 2024. Her practice focuses on water rights litigation and transactions. She graduated with a B.A. in Conservation Biology from Middlebury College in 2011 and a J.D. from the University of Colorado in 2021. Throughout law school, Virginia participated in the Acequia Assistance Project, providing legal support to irrigators in the San Luis Valley. She also earned a certificate in American Indian Law and served as a student attorney in CU's American Indian Law Clinic, working collaboratively with the general counsel for a federally recognized tribe. Following law school, Virginia clerked for the Honorable Melissa Hart on the Colorado Supreme Court.
Virginia spends her free time chasing her kids, dogs, and chickens around outside or playing in the mountains.