Gordon W. "Skip" Netzorg

Gordon W. "Skip" Netzorg

Denver, CO recognized lawyers icon Recognized in Best Lawyers since 2003
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454 Best Lawyers awards

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Awarded Practice Areas

Arbitration Bet-the-Company Litigation Commercial Litigation Litigation - Banking and Finance Litigation - Real Estate Litigation - Securities Mediation

Biography

Skip Netzorg's trial practice is focused on complex, multi-party commercial litigation, with an emphasis on partnership, limited liability company, and corporate disputes; officer and director liability, bond litigation, securities and fraud litigation; natural resources including oil and gas, mining disputes; lender liability, estate, banking, and real estate litigation. Some of his typical cases involve issues as diverse as breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duties, corporate governance, business and investment fraud, real estate, debtor-lender disputes, intellectual property and natural resources. Skip represents a range of clients from chief executives, board members, and multinational corporations, to individuals and small businesses, both plaintiffs and defendants. He has extensive familiarity with corporate, partnership, limited liability company and banking statutory requirements. He has been involved with all aspects of special litigation committees, from court appointment as special litigation counsel to counsel for plaintiffs and defendants in derivative litigation. Skip has successfully tried and obtained verdicts, judgments and arbitration awards in wide variety of complex commercial cases including 8-figure awards and 9-figure settlements.

Skip has served as an arbitration panel chair, panel member or sole arbitrator in a wide variety of cases, including large complex commercial contracts; banking lending practices; finder's fees; intellectual property; computer software; programming; patents; unfair trade practices; breach of fiduciary duties; fraud; liability arising out of accounting and tax advice; FLSA; putative class actions; oil and gas and mining disputes; compensation and retirement issues; collateralized debt; business breakups; tribal conflicts; securities and investments; gaming facilities; sports controversies; international disputes and real estate. Arbitration demands in cases have ranged from 6 to 10 figures. He has also served as counsel in hundreds of disputes including: partnership, corporate, shareholder, securities, corporate governance, derivative, officer and director liability, fraud, oil and gas and mining disputes, real estate, contract, breach of fiduciary duty, probate (litigation only), wrongful termination, intellectual property, computer software disputes, covenants not to compete, attorney ethics, banking/lending, energy, product liability, biotech, pharmaceutical, Indian law and telecommunications. Skip has served as Special Master appointed by federal court to supervise collection of large federal debt. He has mediated cases involving breach of fiduciary duty; breach of trust; registered representative (stock broker) misconduct; entity breakups; professional malpractice; insurance coverage; breach of contract; divorce, auto accidents and large, complex estate and trust matters. Mediated cases frequently involve multiple parties and have ranged in size from 5 to 9 figures.

Taft

454 Best Lawyers awards

Taft logo

Overview

  • Syracuse University, J.D., graduated 1976
  • University of Pennsylvania, BA, graduated 1971

  • Colorado, U.S. District Court, 1976
  • United States, U.S. Court of Appeals, 10th Circuit, 1976
  • United States, U.S. Court of Federal Claims, 1984

  • American Arbitration Association - National Panel of Arbitrators and Mediators; Large Case Committee
  • American Bar Foundation - Fellow
  • American College of Trial Lawyers - Fellow; Past Chair, Colorado State Committee 2010-2012; Task Force on Discovery; Judiciary Committee
  • College of Commercial Arbitrators - Fellow
  • Colorado Civil Access Business Pilot Project - Co-Chair
  • Colorado Supreme Court Advisory Committee on the Rules of Civil Procedure - Former Member
  • Colorado Trial Lawyers Association - Past President; Past Chair, Commercial Law Section
  • International Academy of Trial Lawyers - Fellow
  • National Academy of Distinguished Neutrals - Colorado Charter Member

  • Colorado - Supreme Court
  • Colorado, U.S. District Court, 1976
  • United States, U.S. Court of Appeals, 10th Circuit, 1976
  • United States, U.S. Court of Federal Claims, 1984
  • American Arbitration Association - National Panel of Arbitrators and Mediators; Large Case Committee
  • American Bar Foundation - Fellow
  • American College of Trial Lawyers - Fellow; Past Chair, Colorado State Committee 2010-2012; Task Force on Discovery; Judiciary Committee
  • College of Commercial Arbitrators - Fellow
  • Colorado Civil Access Business Pilot Project - Co-Chair
  • Colorado Supreme Court Advisory Committee on the Rules of Civil Procedure - Former Member
  • Colorado Trial Lawyers Association - Past President; Past Chair, Commercial Law Section
  • International Academy of Trial Lawyers - Fellow
  • National Academy of Distinguished Neutrals - Colorado Charter Member
  • Syracuse University, J.D., graduated 1976
  • University of Pennsylvania, BA, graduated 1971
  • Colorado - Supreme Court

Client Testimonials

I am one of the managers of a real estate investment company. Skip Netzorg has represented our company for over 10 years, including two major and complex "high stakes" pieces of litigation. Skip has always been diligent, thorough, and a zealous advocate. He has exercised superb judgment in how to handle complex and difficult issues. He brings to his representation a keen intellect, vast experience, intuitive understanding of human nature, and a true caring for the interests of his clients. As a result of these traits, Skip has obtained excellent results for us in court. There is no one who we would rather have in our corner in a piece of "bet-the-company" litigation.

Jim Aronstein (Turkey Creek LLC)

Denver, CO

Awards & Focus

Lawyer of the Year Badge - 2025 - Litigation - Real Estate Lawyer of the Year Badge - 2024 - Litigation - Banking and Finance Lawyer of the Year Badge - 2019 - Litigation - Securities Lawyer of the Year Badge - 2013 - Litigation - Banking and Finance Lawyer of the Year Badge - 2010 - Banking and Finance Law
Named "Lawyer of the Year" by Best Lawyers® for:
  • Litigation - Real Estate, Denver (2025)
  • Litigation - Banking and Finance, Denver (2024)
  • Litigation - Securities, Denver (2019)
  • Litigation - Banking and Finance, Denver (2013)
  • Banking and Finance Law, Denver (2010)
Recognized in The Best Lawyers in America® 2026 for work in:
  • Arbitration
  • Bet-the-Company Litigation
  • Commercial Litigation
  • Litigation - Banking and Finance
  • Litigation - Real Estate
  • Litigation - Securities
  • Mediation
Additional Areas of Practice:
  • Banking and Finance Law
  • Corporate Governance Law
  • Securities / Capital Markets Law
Special Focus:
  • Advocacy
  • Arbitration
  • Banking
  • Bankruptcy and Workouts
  • Bond Finance
  • Business
  • Business Disputes
  • Civil Litigation
  • Class Actions
  • Closely-Held Businesses
  • Commercial
  • Complex Disputes
  • Complex Litigation
  • Contract
  • Corporate Governance
  • Defrauded Investors
  • Energy
  • Fiduciary Duties
  • Fraud
  • Investment
  • Large Case Litigation
  • Litigation
  • Mediation
  • Natural Resources
  • Securities
  • Stockholders' Suits
Awards:
  • 2016 Best Lawyers' Listings-Arbitration, Bet-the-Company Litigation, Commercial Litigation, Litigation-Banking and Finance, Litigation-Real Estate, Litigation-Securities, Mediation
  • Best of the Bar Award for Securities Law
  • Colorado Super Lawyers Top 10 2013 to 2021 (Ranked #2 2018, 2020; Ranked #3 2019); Top 50 2006 to 2011; Top 100 2012 to 2021
  • Corporate Live Wire 2015 Natural Resources Litigation Colorado Lawyer of the Year
  • IAALS Rebuilding Justice Award, April 2015
  • Law Week Colorado 2011 Lawyer of the Year
  • Law Week Colorado: Barrister's Best 2015, "People's Choice (attorney votes): Best Renewable Energy Lawyer"
  • Listed since 1995 in Best Lawyers in America; Best Lawyers' 2010 Denver Bankling Lawyer of the Year-Litigation; Best Lawyers' 2013 Denver Banking Lawyer of the Year-Litigation
  • Recognized by 5280 Magazine as Top Lawyer - Commercial Litigation 2015 - 2019, ADR 2020, 2021

Additional Information

  • Publications and Presentations
  • Co-author with Hon. Ann B. Frick, Significant Changes for Business Cases Under the Colorado Civil Access Pilot Project, The Colorado Lawyer, Vol. 41, No. 1 page 29 (Jan. 2012)
  • Co-author with Gilbert Dickenson, Natalie Brown and Hon. Ann B. Frick, Colorado at the Crossroads: Civil Access Pilot Project, The Colorado Lawyer, Vol. 40, No. 1 page 17 (Jan. 2011)
  • Speaker, 10th Circuit Bench and Bar Conference, August 2010, “Rethinking the Rules – Begin with the End in Mind”
  • Co-author with Tobin Kern, Proportional Discovery: Making It the Norm, Rather Than the Exception, 87 University of Denver Law Review 513 (March 2010).
  • Frequent Lecturer, trial practice subjects, various bar associations
  • Representative Matters
  • Typical cases involve issues as diverse as breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duties, corporate governance, business and investment fraud, real estate, debtor-lender disputes, intellectual property and natural resources.
  • Represents a range of clients from chief executives, board members, and multinational corporations, to individuals and small businesses, both plaintiffs and defendants.
  • Extensive familiarity with corporate, partnership, limited liability company and banking statutory requirements.
  • Defense of bank officers and directors on FDIC investigations and administrative claims, including civil monetary penalties and industry bars
  • Defense counsel to bank directors in administrative proceedings by FDIC relating to largest bank failure in Colorado history.
  • Has been involved with all aspects of special litigation committees, from court appointment as special litigation counsel to counsel for corporate entities in derivative litigation.
  • Successfully tried and obtained verdicts, judgments and arbitration awards in wide variety of complex commercial cases including 8-figure awards and 9 figure settlements.
  • Representative matters include: Represented major bank in bond litigation on behalf of bank customers, recovering in excess of 100% of customer investments; Defended mountain developers against major ski area in extinguishing ski area’s rights in 6,000 acres of mountain real estate; Represented major law firm in defense of multimillion dollar claims filed against it – law firm exonerated after 3 day trial; Numerous other cases including shareholder and bondholder suits and class actions, representation of officers and directors in corporate investigations and lawsuits, representation of investors against brokerage firms, representation of various parties in disputed estate matters, oil and gas and mining disputes, disputes among professionals, defense of Resolution Trust Corporation and FDIC investigations and administrative claims on behalf of officers and directors, service as court-appointed discovery and special master; and special litigation committee counsel in derivative litigation.
  • Arbitration cases have included large complex commercial contracts; banking lending practices; finder’s fees; intellectual property; computers; programming; patents; unfair trade practices; breach of fiduciary duties; fraud; accounting and tax; FLSA; putative class actions; collateralized debt; business breakups; natural resources, mining and oil and gas disputes; tribal conflicts; securities and investments; gaming facilities; sports controversies; and real estate matters.
  • Mediation cases have included breach of fiduciary duty; breach of trust; registered representative (stock broker) misconduct; entity breakups; professional malpractice; insurance coverage; breach of contract; divorce; auto accidents and large, complex estate and trust matters. Many of these cases have been multiparty mediations.

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