Firm Profile

Our Focus

Starrs Mihm LLP is a firm of seasoned trial lawyers that focuses on representing clients in legal malpractice, business tort and fraud, and employment and wrongful discharge litigation. We are one of the few law firms in the United States that emphasizes representing plaintiffs in legal malpractice litigation. Starrs Mihm LLP was recently designated by U.S. News & World Report as a Tier 1 law firm in the fields of Legal Malpractice Law - Plaintiff and Legal Malpractice Law - Defense; we are the only firm in Colorado to receive a dual designation.The firm also represents clients in insurance company bad faith lawsuits, and select personal injury and wrongful death lawsuits.

Our Clients

We represent both individuals and businesses. Our business clients tend to be companies, owners, or senior management who require specialized representation in legal malpractice, business fraud, employment or insurance company bad faith litigation. We work closely with in-house counsel or outside general counsel when we represent companies in plaintiff litigation. We handle such cases on hourly, contingent fee and hybrid fee basis. Ours is a client-centered focus adhered to by all of the lawyers and staff in the firm. Our employment and wrongful discharge practice focuses on representing individuals, often management, in disputes regarding employment contracts, non-compete agreements and trade secrets. Our employment practice also includes management-side consulting and advising and internal investigations.

Our Experience

We are among the most experienced trial lawyers in Colorado. Founding partners Elizabeth A. Starrs and Michael T. Mihm were in 2006 selected for the inaugural edition of Colorado Super Lawyers® and they have been included each year since.  Elizabeth Starrs is also named as one of the "Top 10 Lawyers" in Colorado in any field of practice, as well as the “Top 100 Lawyers” and one of the “Top 50 Women Lawyers” in Colorado by Colorado Super Lawyers.®  Mr. Mihm is the only Colorado lawyer designated as a Colorado Super Lawyer in the field of Professional Liablity-Plaintiff.  Both Ms. Starrs and Mr. Mihm have been selected by their peers for inclusion in the 2011 and 2012 editions of The Best Lawyers in America, Ms. Starrs for Business Litigation and Mr. Mihm for Legal Malpractice Law-Plaintiff.  

Ms. Starrs is the former president of the Colorado Bar Association, the Denver Bar Association, the Colorado Women’s Bar Foundation, and the Colorado chapter of the American Board of Trial Advocacy. She is also a Fellow in the American College of Trial Lawyers and the International Academy of Trial Lawyers, two of the most selective trial lawyer organizations in the United States.

Michael Mihm is the managing editor of Lawyers’ Professional Liability in Colorado, a two-volume, 42-chapter book on lawyer’s professional liability and ethics matters. Along with partner Elizabeth Hyatt, Mr. Mihm is the author of a number of chapters in the book. In August 2010, the members of the Colorado Trial Lawyers Association (CTLA) elected Mr. Mihm as an officer CTLA; he currently serves as Secretary.   

In 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2012, Of Counsel Elizabeth J. Hyatt and associate Anna N. Martinez were named as Rising Stars by Colorado Super Lawyers®.  Of Counsel Susan Bernhardt is listed in as a Colorado Super Lawyer in the field of Business Litigation.  Our lawyers are admitted to practice in California, Colorado, Massachusetts, and New Mexico, but we team with local counsel to represent clients in lawsuits throughout the southwestern United States.

Our Trials

While Starrs Mihm LLP focuses on legal malpractice, business tort, and employment litigation, the firm will handle almost any type of case likely to go to trial. For example, in 2009, our lawyers tried cases to verdict on behalf of:

  • a private equity fund suing a former CEO for fraud and embezzlement (Texas);
  • a small business owner defrauded by the buyer of his business (Colorado); and
  • an 88-year old sheep rancher accused of conspiring with his late wife to murder her first husband by poisoning (Colorado)

In 2010, we won the largest jury verdict in memory in Montrose County, Colorado - $1.15 million - in a legal malpractice case involving a lawyer’s mishandling of an underlying medical malpractice case.

We pride ourselves on our courtroom skills and our ability to try any case, regardless of size or complexity. We offer clients a top-notch legal team with a wealth of trial experience. Our client-centered focus, courtroom skills, and passion for our clients' causes have earned us your consideration when the outcome really matters.

To learn more about the accomplishments of our lawyers, see:

Contact us now for a confidential consultation about your case and how we can help you.