Elizabeth K. Salinas-Van Orman

Elizabeth K. Salinas-Van Orman is an Adjunct Professor at the University of Denver Sturm College of Law, where she teaches Negotiation and Mediation.

Elizabeth is a trial lawyer and former practicing ophthalmologist whose practice focuses on medical malpractice defense work and professional licensing matters. She defends health care professionals against civil claims and malpractice suits, and represents them in licensing, credentialing, and disciplinary matters before regulatory boards and agencies.

Before beginning her legal career, Elizabeth earned her medical degree from the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México in 1994 and completed a residency in Ophthalmology and a fellowship in Glaucoma. She served as a faculty member and practicing ophthalmologist in Mexico City before moving to Colorado, where she spent over a decade as Research Director at Glaucoma Consultants of Colorado, managing more than 70 FDA multicenter clinical trials.

Elizabeth focuses her mediation practice on civil cases and the Spanish-speaking community. She volunteers as a bilingual court mediator for Court Mediation Services in Denver District Court. Elizabeth is the Chair of the Colorado Bar Association’s Alternative Dispute Resolution Section. She has also served on the Planning Committee for the Annual CBA-CLE ADR Conference for the past two years and as administrator for the ABA Regional Representation in Mediation Competition since 2024.

Elizabeth earned her law degree from the University of Denver Sturm College of Law.

She currently practices at the firm Recht Kornfeld, P.C., in Denver.