2025 Colorado Law Alumni Award Honorees

Michael McCarthy is a graduate of the University of Michigan (B.A., History, 1971) and the University of Colorado School of Law (J.D., 1975). Michael began his law practice as a commercial litigator and business trial lawyer with the Denver firm of Conover, McClearn, Burkhardt & Heppenstall, handling a wide variety of disputes involving breach of contract, antitrust, securities fraud, bankruptcy and environmental law.

In 1988, Michael joined the Minneapolis-based firm of Faegre & Benson as a partner in its Denver office. Michael’s practice has involved notable cases, including: representation of the Colorado Rockies Baseball Club in a month-long trial in Youngstown, Ohio bankruptcy court in which he successfully defended against the claims of a former owner; and, representation, pro bono, of Douglas County public school students and parents in successfully enjoining a voucher program that was diverting public funds.

Michael was a member of the firm-wide Faegre & Benson Management Committee for 8 years. He also served as a member and Chair of the Committee on Conduct for the Colorado U.S. District Court and as a member of two federal Bankruptcy Judge Merit Selection Panels.

Michael’s involvement in the Boulder community includes service as a member of the board of the Boulder Shelter for the Homeless, including as chair of the board during construction of the current Shelter facility, as well as membership on the board of the Colorado Chautauqua Association and the CU Law Alumni Board.

In 2004, Michael was inducted as a Fellow in the American College of Trial Lawyers and subsequently served as a member and Chair of the State Committee for the Trial College.

At year-end 2021, Michael retired from his trial practice at the Faegre firm. He resides in Boulder with his wife, Dr. Marilyn Dougherty, a long-time Boulder ophthalmologist. He is also a frequent visitor with his adult children, Brooke McCarthy, a litigation partner with the Kutak Rock firm in Omaha, and Dr. Fenton McCarthy, a cardiovascular surgeon practicing in Spokane. Finally – and importantly – Michael has 5 wonderful grandchildren who are the light of his life.

Sara Hoverstock currently serves as General Counsel for Crocs, Inc., (NASDAQ: CROX). Crocs is headquartered in Broomfield, Colorado and serves as a world leader in innovative casual footwear for all. The Company's brands include Crocs and HEYDUDE, and its products are sold in more than 80 countries globally through wholesale and direct-to-consumer channels. 

Ms. Hoverstock started at Crocs in 2005 and assisted with the Company’s IPO in 2006. Throughout the years, Ms. Hoverstock has held various positions of legal oversight including management of the Company’s global intellectual property portfolio, looking after the Company’s international legal affairs and participation in various M&A activities. 

During her tenure at Crocs, Ms. Hoverstock was stationed in Singapore for three years where she built out the Asia legal department, oversaw all legal affairs for the APAC/Middle East regions and closely managed the Company’s IP strategy. Ms. Hoverstock currently oversees all legal matters for the enterprise and manages a team of more than 30 attorneys and staff globally. She continues to travel extensively to the Company’s regional offices to oversee her international responsibilities.  

Working at Crocs for nearly 20 years has allowed Ms. Hoverstock to see several evolutions of the brand and its growth from a $100M entrepreneurial start up to the $4B+ global footwear powerhouse it is today. She credits her long tenure with the business to the unbelievable growth trajectory of Crocs as the Company’s evolution has allowed her unique, growth enabling and challenging experience and opportunity.  

Prior to coming to Crocs, Ms. Hoverstock worked at the law firm of Berg Hill Greenleaf and Rucitti LLP located in Boulder, Co. Ms. Hoverstock received her Bachelor of Science summa cum laude in Kinesiology and Physiology from the University of Colorado where she was also a member of Phi Beta Kappa.  Ms. Hoverstock received her Juris Doctor degree from the University of Colorado in 2004 and is currently admitted to the Colorado Bar.  Ms. Hoverstock  lives in Boulder, Colorado with her husband and two sons.

Bill Leone graduated Order of the Coif from the law school in 1981.  His wife Cheryl and son Nick also graduated from the School of Law in 1989 and 2016 respectively.  He is a partner with the Global law Firm Norton Rose Fulbright. Norton Rose Fulbright is ranked fourth in the world on Law 360’s Global 20 list. He has served as the head of litigation and white collar defense in the firm’s Denver and New York offices. He is a former United States Attorney for Colorado.  In the US Attorney’s Office he led the prosecution of Qwest Communications executives and oversaw numerous other matters, civil and criminal. He taught securities and accounting fraud to prosecutors from around the country at the National Advocacy Center in Columbia South Carolina in the aftermath of the Enron meltdown. He led the US civil and criminal litigation teams that received LAW 360’s Transatlantic Investigations Team of the Year award for their work in the London Whale case. He served on the Independent Ethics Commission under appointments by then Governor John Hickenlooper and the Colorado Senate. He was also selected to serve on the Colorado Independent Re-districting Commission.  

Bill’s practice spans the full scope of disputes involving the interface between government and the private sector including investigations, white collar defense and trial work, securities, environmental, false claims act, and related matters, including parallel civil litigation. Licensed in New York and Colorado, his clients have included global banks, pipeline companies, real estate developers, healthcare providers, , venture capital firms, Big Four accounting firms, Rupert Murdoch’s NewsCorp, and international derivatives traders. His cases have included the widely reported Dakota Access Pipeline matter, the civil and criminal prosecution relating to the London Whale securities matter, and civil and criminal corruption probes relating to the reconstruction of the electrical grid in Puerto Rico following Hurricane Maria.

Amy Parsons is the 16th President of Colorado State University, an R1 university founded in 1870 as Colorado’s land-grant institution. CSU’s flagship campus in Fort Collins serves over 34,000 students and has a presence in all 64 Colorado counties. As CSU’s chief executive officer, Parsons combines her higher education background with private sector experience, as well as a background in law.  

Prior to being named CSU President in 2023, Parsons was the founding CEO of a global e-commerce company and served for 17 years in various senior executive leadership roles at CSU and the CSU System. These roles include executive vice chancellor of the CSU System, vice president for university operations at CSU, deputy general counsel, and associate legal counsel. She worked as a litigation attorney for Denver-firm Brownstein, Hyatt, & Farber (now Brownstein, Hyatt, Farber, Schreck) from 1999-2004.  

Parsons currently serves on the NCAA Committee for Infractions, the Salazar Center for North American Conservation External Advisory Board, the Colorado Business Roundtable Board of Directors, the Committee on Economic Development Board of Trustees of The Conference Board, and the Alpine Bank Board of Directors. Additionally, she is seated on the Mountain West Board of Directors (through June 2026) and the PAC-12 Board of Directors.  

Parsons holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from CSU and a Juris Doctorate from the University of Colorado. She was born in Colorado and grew up in Wyoming. She is married to fellow Colorado Law alum, Jeff Parsons, and they have two daughters, both of whom are currently studying at CSU.

Marissa is an international criminal and human rights lawyer. She works on strategic litigation against abusive governments and other actors on behalf of survivors, including dissidents, political prisoners, and victim communities. She also advises NGOs addressing atrocity crimes globally. Marissa currently serves as Legal Advisor with Project Expedite Justice’s Ukraine program, where she supports Ukrainian and international accountability efforts for Russian atrocity crimes, and sits on the Board of NGO Strategic Advocacy for Human Rights, where she supports women human rights defenders advocating for legal and policy reform to eradicate sexual and gender-based violence. As an officer with the International Bar Association’s Human Rights Law Committee, Marissa also leads a joint team, from the Committee and Yale University’s Genocide Studies Program, on reports and advocacy relating to justice for the Yazidi genocide. 

Marissa has worked on rule-of-law initiatives concerning conflicts in Iraq, Syria, Ukraine, Russia, Libya, Iran, Afghanistan, Myanmar, Bangladesh, and Seychelles. She previously managed numerous cases against the Islamic Republic of Iran in U.S. federal court on behalf of regime dissidents for hostage-taking, torture, extrajudicial killing, and aircraft sabotage, served as Senior Legal Consultant for the Seychelles Truth, Reconciliation and National Unity Commission, worked as an A.D.A. in Queens, New York, and worked in the International Criminal Court’s Office of the Prosecutor. She zealously seeks justice and healing through victim-centered and trauma-informed practices. 

In 2022, Marissa founded the Hedera Collective, a space for public international law professionals to support each other and create more sustainable and impactful careers in their demanding field. 

Marissa holds a J.D. and Certificate in International Law from the University of Colorado Law School and a B.A. summa cum laude in both Anthropology and Dance from The George Washington University. She is an avid skier, yogi, crossword puzzler, and ethically-sourced dark chocolate connoisseur, and is very proud to be part of the Colorado Law community. 

Eric Williams serves as Deputy Vice President of Investigations at the U.S. Center for SafeSport (the Center). Williams joined the Center’s Response & Resolution team in 2020 and progressed from Assistant Director to Director into his current leadership position due to outstanding performance. The Center is a 501 (c)(3) non-profit, federally authorized to, independently, resolve abuse and misconduct reports for more than 11 million individuals throughout the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Movement.  

As Deputy Vice President, Williams provides guidance to internal and external investigative teams, works seamlessly with the legal team to develop crucial policy and procedural updates, seeks appropriate resolutions, and operates cross-functionally to advance the Center’s mission to end abuse in sport.  

Prior to joining the Center, Williams served as Deputy Director of Denver’s Department of Public Safety where he facilitated collaboration and enhanced operational efficiency by coordinating activities among first responders within the city’s emergency response system. Additionally, he launched the first-in-class Public Integrity Division while overseeing workplace investigations, time-sensitive policy violation determinations, and budget management.    

Williams dedicated more than a decade of service to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), including as a Supervisory Special Agent in its Office of Congressional Affairs where he cultivated strategic partnerships and served as an advisor to FBI executive management. Throughout his career, he conducted high-priority civil rights, public corruption, and national security investigations. Williams is a certified Crisis/Hostage Negotiator and adjunct faculty member. He received numerous FBI, U.S. Department of Justice, and Intelligence Community awards for his noteworthy accomplishments.  

Williams is a licensed attorney and U.S. Navy veteran who earned his Juris Doctor from the University of Colorado School of Law, and a Bachelor of Science in Criminology and Political Science from Metropolitan State University of Denver.