Lisa . Shellenberger

Setter Roche Smith Shellenberger

Lisa R. Shellenberger, Esq., is a Managing Partner at the Denver-based law firm of Setter Roche Smith & Shellenberger, LLP, and she also sits as an Appellate Judge for the Havasupai Court of Appeals located in the tribal community of Supai, Arizona. Ms. Shellenberger is an award-winning attorney, as she has been awarded the Super Lawyers Rising Star Award for 9 years running, from 2017 – 2025. She was featured as one of Denver’s “Most Influential Women,” in VOGUE in its April 2025 issue. She has also received accolades for her work with tribal communities, much of which has received national attention through media outlets such as NPR, the New York Times, and the Washington Post. Ms. Shellenberger primarily practices in the areas of family law, juvenile law, and tribal law, and she is considered one of the leading specialists in the state when it comes to compliance with the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) – particularly in domestic relations and non-D&N case-types. In addition to providing specialized ICWA legal and consulting services, she also provides Qualified Expert Witness (QEW) services in ICWA cases. She sits on several Colorado Judicial Committees, including the Juvenile Rules Committee and the ICWA Rules Committee, and she has served as an advisor to the State Court Administrator’s Office on ICWA-related matters. She also regularly teaches CLEs on the topic of ICWA, juvenile law, and family-law related topics, and she was on the drafting committee for the Colorado state ICWA legislation (SB23-211 and HB25-1204). Ms. Shellenberger is a member of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma, and she was raised on the Osage Nation Reservation, where her family still resides. Ms. Shellenberger uniquely possesses both a highly developed skillset in the application of ICWA in family law and juvenile law cases, as well as real-life experience living and working in Indian country.

(09/25)