Law Firm Overview

Dena Silliman Nielson, Attorney at Law, has over 12 years experience in all aspects of Indian law, family law, landlord/tenant issues, civil litigation and appellate matters, among others. She has also been actively engaged in teaching law students and paralegals as well as conducting training for tribal officials and tribal employees. Ms. Nielson is a trained negotiator with highly developed interpersonal skills. She has, as well, had training as a family law mediator and has served as a Certified Intermediary for the Oklahoma Department of Human Services. Ms. Nielson has handled litigation in small, rural tribal courts as well as preparing briefs and oral arguments for the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals and the United States Supreme Court. As a result, she is an accomplished researcher with well-developed analytical and legal writing abilities.

After graduating Summa Cum Laude from Central State University in Edmond, Oklahoma, Ms. Nielson attended law school at the University of Oklahoma in Norman, Oklahoma. She graduated in May 1993 and was admitted to practice law in the State of Oklahoma that same year. She immediately began an association with Pipestem & Associates working in Indian country with one of its most prestigious attorneys. During this association, Ms. Silliman Nielson worked closely with tribes and tribal entities in an effort to represent their interests both locally and nationally. After Mr. Pipestem’s untimely death in 1999, Ms. Nielson moved her practice to Denver, Colorado and was associated for a time as of counsel with Wagenlander & Heisterkamp, LLC.

Today Ms. Nielson’s practice is located in Broomfield, Colorado where she focuses on Indian housing issues, environmental issues in Indian country and advocating legal changes in federal laws that directly affect her clients. Additionally, Ms. Nielson represents individual clients in the areas of civil litigation, real estate, appellate matters and family law including divorce and maintenance, child custody, child support, interstate cases, and other similar matters. In dealing with these personal matters, Ms. Nielson’s philosophy is to try to make the process as easy as possible. Agreements between the parties are usually easier to enforce and work better long term for those involved. However, where an agreement is not possible, Ms. Nielson will aggressively pursue the relief sought by her client.

Areas of Practice

• Divorce
• Child Custody
• Child Support
• Paternity
• Interstate Cases
• Parenting Time
• Civil Litigation
• Appeals
• Landlord/Tenant
• Indian Law
• Indian Child Welfare Act
• Tax Law

West Practice Categories

Administrative Law, Family Law, Adoption, Child Support, Custody & Visitation, Divorce, Native Peoples Law, Taxation Law