Marjorie K. Nanian
Member Spotlight
January/February 2025
Download This Article (.pdf)
Marjorie Nanian is originally from Michigan, where she worked as a solo practitioner for 30 years and as an adjunct college professor. Most recently, she worked as an administrative law judge in Phoenix, Arizona, and for a short time as a deputy district attorney in the 13th Judicial District of Colorado. She is the newest member of the Colorado Lawyer advisory board and is currently serving as board secretary.
Hometown: Jackson, Michigan
Law School: Thomas M. Cooley Law School in Lansing, Michigan
Lives in: Westminster
Works at: Looking for my next position
Practice Areas: General practice (criminal and civil); academic; administrative/regulatory
CBA Member Since: July 2024
Describe yourself in five words.
Energetic, driven, hardworking, dependable, and trustworthy.
Why did you become a lawyer?
To make the world a better place. Attorneys are policymakers/influencers.
Please share a positive experience you’ve had as a lawyer.
Overturning a city ordinance as overbroad and vague on behalf of my client, a college student.
What do you think is the most essential professional skill?
Critical thinking.
What do you think is the most essential life skill?
An education or trade or both. I developed photography as a trade and put myself through law school photographing weddings.
What advice would you give a new lawyer?
Find an area of the law that offers some flexibility if you plan to start a family. Certain areas are more demanding than others.
If you weren’t a lawyer, you’d be?
A voiceover actor for a cartoon character.
How do you like to spend your free time?
I enjoy writing short stories and children’s books, two of which have been published. I’m working on my third book, My Mommy’s a Judge.
What is your guilty pleasure?
Chocolate. I once had a client send me a new briefcase filled with chocolate bars after I won his case.
What is your favorite travel memory?
Going to Europe as part of my high school band for a concert tour in five countries. I played clarinet. My dad had spearheaded the fundraiser, which was a big event in my hometown.
If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would you go?
Egypt and Armenia.
What is your proudest accomplishment?
I have two. First, I was the founder and president of the Armenian-American Bar Association in Michigan. We had 160 members. It was the first of its kind in the country and was the prototype for the national organization, the Armenian Bar Association, located in California. Second, I spearheaded a lobbying initiative to mandate the teaching of the Armenian Genocide during WWI in Michigan Public Schools. We joined forces with the Jewish lobby to mandate the teaching of the Holocaust during WWII. Our bill was signed into law within the year by Governor Rick Snyder.
Greatest inspiration or influence and why:
My dad. He believed that there was nothing I couldn’t do if I put my mind to it. He believed that women should be educated so that they could take care of themselves and their families. “Why work for minimum wage if you could earn $50 an hour?” he would say. That was a lot of money when I was growing up.
Would you like to be featured in Under Oath? Email Susie Klein at sklein@cobar.org for a questionnaire.
Explore This Issue
Management Liability Coverages
Tort and Insurance Law
By Britton D. Weimer
