Laura Chartrand is a Special Counsel in the Firm’s Denver office and a member of the Energy & Natural Resources practice group. Ms. Chartrand has nearly two decades of experience representing business owners, agricultural interests, trade associations, elected officials, and government agencies in energy and natural resource matters. Her clients are in various industries, including natural resources development, agriculture, oil and gas, and mining.

She is the former Regional Solicitor of the Rocky Mountain Region with the U.S. Department of Interior. She also served as a Deputy Attorney General for the Natural Resources and Environment Section with the Colorado Attorney General’s Office. Her state and federal government experience includes directing litigation and providing general counsel advice for the agencies within the U.S. Department of Interior and Colorado Department of Natural Resources and the environmental divisions of the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment.

Ms. Chartrand’s private practice work includes representing clients on a range of energy and natural resource matters, including public utilities, water resources and quality, public lands, energy development, and endangered species. Prior to her legal and policy work, she spent nearly fifteen years in higher education and corporate management positions.??

With unmatched experience, Ms. Chartrand’s expertise makes her uniquely qualified to provide clients with legal, regulatory, and legislative representation in energy and natural resources legal matters. An overview of her representations includes:

• ??Water and Agriculture Policy Advisor at the Western Governors’ Association. She advised the governors of 19 western states and 3 U.S.-flag islands on a variety of critical natural resources issues and guided the Western Governors’ positions on the U.S. Forest Service Groundwater Directive and Good Samaritan (abandoned mines) proposed legislation.
• Water resources policy advisor at Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association, Inc. She represented Tri-State Generation on the Yampa-Green-White Basin Roundtable and assisted in the design of the Basin Implementation Plan for the Colorado Water Plan.
• Service on the Nebraska Water Balance Alliance, supporting the development of tools for agricultural producers to provide increased yields and sustainable water use practices.

Awards and Honors

• Leadership Program of the Rockies, Defender of Capitalism Award, 2010

Professional Involvement

• Department of Interior, Office of the Solicitor, Lakewood, CO Regional Solicitor, Rocky Mountain Region, December 2020 – May 2023
• Chartrand Law, LLC, Founding Partner, March 2019-December 2020
• Colorado Attorney General’s Office, Deputy Attorney General, Natural Resources and Environment, June 2016 – February 2019
• Western Governors’ Association, Policy Advisor, Water & Agriculture, August 2015 – June 2016
• Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association, Inc., Water Resources Policy Advisor, October 2012 – August 2015
• Counsel & Ex-Officio Member, Colorado Water Conservation Board, July 2016-January 2019
• Member, Colorado Supreme Court Water Court Rules Committee, July 2016-January 2019
• Executive Council Member/Secretary-Treasurer, Natural Resources and Energy Law Section, Colorado Bar Association, 2010-2012

Bar Admissions

• Colorado

• City-County energy alliance finds legal representation