A Conversation with CBA Outstanding Young Lawyer of the Year Clarissa M. Collier, 0417 COBJ, Vol. 46 No. 4 Pg. 15
| Author | Jessica Volz, J. |
Profiles in Success
Jessica Volz, J.
This article marks the second installment of The Colorado Lawyer’s new “Profiles in Success” column, which celebrates those individuals, living and deceased, whose contributions to the practice of law lend themselves to inspiring narratives. To suggest an article, contact Jessica A. Volz, PhD, at jvolz@cobar.org. Volz is a communications and marketing strategist for the Colorado and Denver Bar Associations, as well as the editor of The Docket.
Perhaps no success stories are more enthralling than those that are borne on the wings of humble beginnings. In the legal profession, we often hear of individuals who have harnessed the powers of persuasion, evidence, and the Rule of Law to achieve justice for those who have been wronged or who stand wrongly accused. Far rarer are stories of individuals who have also wielded superlative grit to turn their own lives right-side-up. My first encounter with Clarissa Collier confirmed that she, like a diamond, has earned her brilliance by withstanding unfathomable pressure. Our informal Q&A session rapidly gave way to a more fluid conversation as she recounted her journey to her present role as an associate at Holland & Hart.
Do No Harm and Be a Blessing
Clarissa Collier grew up in poverty. She came from a family of Italian and African-American heritage where people passed away too soon and too often. Her father and mother separated when she was 5 years old while they were living in Virginia. In 1988, she, her mother, and her two older brothers moved to Wyoming. They lived on welfare until she was 12 and her mother remarried. During this tumultuous period, they relied on the kindness of strangers for groceries, Christmas gifts, and clothes. Her mother instilled in her the virtues of patience and empathy; her father, who had endured the racial tensions that plagued South Carolina in the 1960s, taught her to be strong and to always work hard. Still living in poverty, Collier started working at age 15 as a way to escape poverty and as a temporary reprieve from her stepfather. Collier’s tensions with her stepfather reached a boiling point at the beginning of her senior year in high school, and she left home at age 17. She was the first member of her...
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