What Our Mothers
Would Tell You

Our innate modesty and good manners prevent us from bragging too much about ourselves. Our mothers, however, have no such hesitation. They insist on telling you…

  • 6 of our lawyers are ranked by The Chambers USA Guide to America’s Leading Lawyers.
  • 7 lawyers are AV® Preeminent™ rated by Martindale-Hubbell.
  • 14 lawyers are listed in Best Lawyers® in America, and 3 have even claimed the top spot as “Lawyer of the Year” within their practice areas in the Phoenix area.
  • 11 have been recognized in Southwest Super Lawyers – 3 have been selected every year since 2007, 6 have been honored as “Southwest Rising Stars,” and 2 have been consistently voted by peers as one of the Top 50 Lawyers in Arizona.
  • 13 lawyers were on Law Review with 3 as editors-in-chief.
  • 14 lawyers served judicial clerkships, 4 for judges on federal courts of appeals.

Our strengths can be traced to the diverse background of our team. Many of us worked in large firms. One is past-president of the American Health Lawyers Association. One was Counsel to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. One was a Foreign Service Officer for the U.S. Department of State and a Member of Congress. One was General Counsel to a national retail company and one of Arizona’s largest nonprofit organizations. And one of us once defended the deposition of the Phoenix Suns Gorilla.

But we’re not all work and no play. We take immense pride in our personal accomplishments:

At Play

  • One of us impersonated Elvis and played the Pharaoh in an off-Broadway rendition of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.
  • One of us owns a pit bull and is always ready to explain why they are really nice dogs.
  • One of our partners had the opportunity to salsa dance with the members of the Buena Vista Social Club in Havana. Even the older gents in wheelchairs were good dancers!
  • One of us won the limbo contest at our high school graduation.

At Sport

  • One of our lawyers was a U.S. Olympic swimmer (most of the rest of us can swim).
  • Several of us have run half/full/ultra-marathons and some have done triathlons (including an Ironman), while others are serious cyclists.
  • One has climbed the highest peaks in the Andes, the Alps, and the Caucasus and two others have climbed Mount Kilimanjaro (some of us drive by Camelback Mountain every morning).

On the Road

  • One of us led a trip of American lawyers to study the health care system in Cuba (just before President Obama restored diplomatic relations with Cuba, which may or may not be coincidental).
  • One has been attending the Telluride Film Festival for 30 years and (allegedly) spent one night on a bus with Jerry Garcia.

At Coppersmith Brockelman, we all share intellectual curiosity, an ability to work well with others, a sense of humor, and a willingness to put the needs of others before our own interests. It’s these values that define us and make us a top-shelf law firm.