About Joanne
Joanne Underhill began her academic journey at Yale University, earning a B.A. in psychology in 1973. She went on to law school at American University Washington College of Law, receiving her J.D. in 1979. Those formative years set the stage for a legal career that has spanned both government service and private practice.
She entered practice in 1979 as a lawyer at Howrey LLP, then known as Howrey & Simon. Early on she moved into public service. In 1983 she joined the Federal Home Loan Bank Board as an assistant general counsel and trial lawyer. That role put her in the courtroom and in regulatory settings, handling disputes and regulatory questions tied to financial institutions.
By 1986 she took the title of special counsel at Gorsuch Kirgis Campbell Walker & Grover LLP. Two years later she became a shareholder and lawyer at Popham Haik Schnobrich, Ltd. Her career continued through the 1990s when she and others launched Underhill & Underhill, P.C. in 1994. The pattern was one of alternating public-sector intensity and private-practice leadership.
In 2013 she established Underhill Law, P.C., the firm listed as her current office. She has maintained ties to the Colorado legal community for decades. She is a member of the Colorado Bar Association since 1987 and has been active in the Arapahoe County Bar Association since 2015. Outside the bar, she served in leadership roles focused on women’s advancement, including co-chairing the Girl Scouts Mile Hi Council Women’s Leadership Circle from 1996 to 1998 and co-chairing the Colorado Women’s Leadership Coalition from 1996 to 1997.
Her work reflects litigation and counsel experience across government and private sectors. She has handled trial-level matters and regulatory issues, drawing on the trial work she did at the Federal Home Loan Bank Board and the client-side advocacy she provided at several law firms. That mix gives her practical familiarity with courtroom procedure and regulatory frameworks, particularly those affecting financial and institutional clients.
Colleagues describe her approach as straightforward and methodical. She moves between courtroom advocacy and client counseling with steady attention to process and evidence. She practices in Colorado and maintains active engagement in local bar activities. She currently practices at Underhill Law, P.C., where she concentrates on litigation and regulatory matters in the Colorado legal landscape.
