Practice areas: Family Law, Alternative Dispute Resolution, Appellate; view more
Licensed in Colorado since: 2012
Education: University of Colorado Law School
Languages spoken: English, Italian, Spanish
Selected to Super Lawyers: 2026 - 2027 
Selected to Rising Stars: 2017 - 2025 Call today:
720-443-4892
Free Consultation GEM Family Law
650 S Cherry StSuite 500
Denver, CO 80246 Visit website
Elizabeth Bonanno is a Partner at GEM Family Law, and is named one of ten Best Divorce Lawyers in Denver by Forbes for both 2024 and 2025. Elizabeth practices exclusively in family law, having served hundreds of clients during her tenure with their divorces, parenting, and child support cases. Elizabeth’s family law practice has focused on asset and business valuation, income valuation, complex divorce, parental responsibilities, child relocation, and child support matters, among others. Elizabeth speaks both Spanish and Italian and uses these skills to assist non-native speakers in navigating through domestic matters.
Elizabeth’s outstanding legal work and professionalism has been recognized by her selection as a 2026 Colorado Super Lawyer®, a 2017-2025 Colorado Super Lawyer® “Rising Star”, her inclusion in The Best Lawyers In America© 2021-2026 for both Family Law and Family Law Arbitration, by the judicial officers of Arapahoe County, who invited her to serve on their Best Practices Committee, and by Law Week Colorado, who named her as one of only seven “Up and Coming Lawyers” for 2015. She was also a finalist for the Gary McPherson outstanding young lawyer of the year award from the Colorado Bar Association in 2016.
Elizabeth graduated from the University of Colorado Law School with Honors in Juvenile and Family Law. Elizabeth practiced family law for seven years at Griffiths Law PC, and was a partner at the firm from January, 2017 through July, 2019, joining the GEM family on August 1, 2019. She received additional family law experience as a law clerk to The Honorable Judge Norman D. Haglund (Ret.) on the domestic docket in Denver District Court.
Elizabeth trained in trial advocacy under Colorado Supreme Court Justice The Honorable Nancy Rice (Ret.) and displays confidence and poise in the courtroom, having run many hearings and trials - Elizabeth is one of the foremost family law litigators. However, she is also a firm believer in mediation and alternative dispute resolution, assisting clients in settling matters before they reach the courthouse. Elizabeth is trained in Collaborative Law, whereby parties commit to resolving their dissolution of marriage cooperatively and without the court’s involvement.
Along with her law practice, Elizabeth has authored articles for publications and has presented at seminars on family law topics. She is a member of several professional organizations, including an Executive Council Member of the Colorado Bar Association, Family Law Section, Past President of the Metro Denver Interdisciplinary Committee, an organization committed to the improvement of family law via the intersection of the mental health and legal fields, the Denver Bar Association, the Colorado Bar Association, the Colorado Judicial Institute and the James E. Doyle American Inn of Court, and is a member of the Arapahoe County Best Practices Committee, an invite-only group of judicial officers, clerks and attorneys focused on improving family law in Arapahoe County.
Practice areas
Family Law, Alternative Dispute Resolution, AppellateFocus areas
Alimony & Spousal Support, Appeals, Arbitration, Child Support, Custody & Visitation, Dissolution, Divorce, Domestic Violence, Marital Property, Mediation, Mediation & Collaborative Law, Paternity, Same Sex Family Law
- 80% Family Law
- 10% Alternative Dispute Resolution
- 10% Appellate
First Admitted: 2012, Colorado
Professional Webpage: https://www.familylawco.com/attorney/bonanno-elizabeth/
Bar / Professional Activity
- Arapahoe County Domestic Relations, Best Practices Committee
- Colorado Bar Association Family Law Section, Executive Council Member, 2005
- Colorado Bar Association, Family Law Section - Executive Council Member, 2024
- Colorado Women’s Bar Association, Circle of Minerva
- Doyle’s American Inn of Court
- Metro Denver Interdisciplinary Committee, Past President
- Colorado Bar Association, Family Law Section - Executive Council Member, 2023
- Colorado Judicial Institute
- Colorado Collaborative Divorce Professionals
- Denver Bar Association
Verdicts / Settlements (Case Results)
- In re Marriage of O'Connor, 2023 COA 35, No. 21CA1695., 2023
Educational Background
- Truman State University, B.A., Political Science and Spanish, magna cum laude, 2009
- Colorado Collaborative Divorce Professionals Training, 2015
Scholarly Lectures / Writings
- Presentation regarding the due diligence and strategy when considering the allocation of real estate in divorce. , Co-Presenter, Can I Keep the House? The Fundamentals of Refis and Buyouts, Colorado Family Law Institute, Legal, 2025
- Presented to attorneys on the nuances of grandparent visitation actions., Co-Presenter, Grandfulence®: Grandparents, Other Third-Party Influencers, and Plain Ol' Meddlers, Colorado Bar Association Family Law Section, 2025
- Presentation to Judiciary on how judicial officers should manage cases involving court ordered reunification therapy., Co-Presenter, Orders Orders Orders: Why We Need Them and Who We Are Working With, Domestic Relations and Probate Judicial Institute, Judiciary, 2023
- Presentation regarding the intersection of family law and trust law., Co-Presenter, All is Fair in Love and Trust Law, Colorado Bar Association, Family Law Section, Legal, 2023
- Presentation to attorney and mental health professional members of the Metro Denver Interdisciplinary Committee on how to determine the truth when addressing abuse allegations in domestic relations cases., Co-Presenter, Truth, Lies, and Consequences in DR Cases, Metro Denver Interdisciplinary Committee, Legal, 2023
- Presentation to the Colorado Family Law Insitute providing techniques on the practice of Collaborative Law., Co-Presenter, Collaborative Law - Debunking the Myths: A Current Perspective on Adding the Collaborative Law Model to Your Family Law Toolbox, Family Law Institute, 2019
- Presentation to the judiciary regarding how to address and resolve when a child is refusing contact with a parent., Co-Presenter, Resist and Refuse: It's a Family Problem, Domestic Relations and Probate Judicial Conference, Domestic Relations And Probate Judicial Officers, 2021
- April and May, 2020. Hosted panelists to discuss ongoing issues related to COVID-19., Moderator, Parenting Time and COVID-19: A Virtual Town Hall Conversation, Metro Denver Interdisciplinary Committee, 2020
- “QDROs Boot Camp,” National Business Institute Continuing Legal Education Program, co-presenter, July 2016, July 2017, Co-Presenter, QDROs Boot Camp, National Business Institute, 2016
- Panelist presenting perspective on legal solutions for family law practitioners where children refuse contact with a parent., Panelist, Understanding and Intervening: When Children Refuse Contact with a Parent, Colorado Association of Family and Conciliatory Courts, 2019
- “QDROs Boot Camp,” National Business Institute Continuing Legal Education Program, co-presenter, July 2016, July 2017, Co-Presenter, QDROs Boot Camp, National Business Institute, 2017
- Presented with judicial officer regarding best practices in the courtroom, March, 2018, Co-Presenter, “Trial Tips – Pet Peeves and Best Practices”, Colorado Judicial Institute, 2018
- Article published in ColoradoBiz Magazine online, December, 2018, Author, “The Holistic Divorce: How to Separate the Family Unit Without Destroying It”, ColoradoBiz Magazine, 2018
- “Calling All Spanish-Speaking Lawyers” by Elizabeth Bonanno, The Docket, February 2015, Vol. 37, No. 2, Author, Calling All Spanish-Speaking Lawyers, The Docket, 2015
- Our Courts Presentation through the Colorado Judicial Institute., Presenter, Our Courts, Colorado Judicial Institute Joint Public Education Project, 2015
- "How to Get Your Social Media, Email and Text Evidence Admitted (and Keep Theirs Out)", Presenter, How to Get Your Social Media, Email and Text Evidence Admitted (and Keep Theirs Out), National Business Institute, 2017
Honors
- Selected as one of the Best Lawyers in America for 2026., The Best Lawyers In America©, Family Law and Family Law Arbitration, The Best Lawyers In America, 2026
- Named Colorado Super Lawyer®, Super Lawyer, Colorado Super Lawyer®, 2026
- Named Rising Star by Colorado Super Lawyer®. , Rising Star, Colorado Super Lawyer®, 2025
- Named Rising Star by Colorado Super Lawyer® ., Rising Star, Colorado Super Lawyer®, 2024
- Selected as one of the Best Lawyers In America for Family Law and Family Law Arbitration., The Best Lawyers In America© 2025, Family Law and Family Law Arbitration, The Best Lawyers In America, 2025
- Named one of 10 top divorce attorneys in Denver by Forbes., Top Divorce Attorneys in Denver, Forbes Advisors, 2025
- Selected as one of the Best Lawyers in America for Family Law and Family Law Arbitration., The Best Lawyers In America©, Family Law and Family Law Arbitration, The Best Lawyers in America, 2024
- Named one of 10 top divorce attorneys in Denver by Forbes., Top Divorce Attorneys Denver, Forbes Advisors, 2024
- Selected as one of the Best Lawyers in America for Family Law and Family Law Arbitration., The Best Lawyers In America©, Family Law and Family Law Arbitration, The Best Lawyers in America, 2021
- Selected as one of the Best Lawyers in America for Family Law and Family Law Arbitration., The Best Lawyers In America© 2022, Family Law and Family Law Arbitration, The Best Lawyers in America, 2022
- Named Colorado Super Lawyer® Rising Star, Rising Star, Colorado Super Lawyer®, 2023
- Named Colorado Super Lawyer® Rising Star, Rising Star, Colorado Super Lawyer®, 2022
- Named Colorado Super Lawyer® Rising Star, Rising Star, Colorado Super Lawyer®, 2021
- Selected as one of the Best Lawyers in America for Family Law and Family Law Arbitration., The Best Lawyers In America© 2023, Family Law and Family Law Arbitration, The Best Lawyers in America, 2023
- Named one of seven Up and Coming Lawyers in 2015., Up and Coming Lawyers, Law Week Colorado, 2015
- Named Colorado Super Lawyer® Rising Star, Rising Star, Colorado Super Lawyer®, 2020
- Named Colorado Super Lawyer® Rising Star, Rising Star, Colorado Super Lawyer®, 2019
- Named Colorado Super Lawyer® Rising Star, Rising Star, Colorado Super Lawyer®, 2018
- The highest rating on attorney rating service, AVVO., 10/10 Rating, AVVO, 2020
- Finalist for the Young Lawyer of the Year award for the Colorado Bar Association., Gary McPherson Outstanding Young Lawyer of the Year Finalist, Colorado Bar Association, 2016
- Named Colorado Super Lawyer® Rising Star for each year, 2017-2020., Rising Star, Colorado Super Lawyer®, 2017
- Graduated with Honors in Juvenile and Family Law, University of Colorado Law School, Honors in Juvenile and Family Law, University of Colorado Law School, 2012
These comments were made by fellow attorneys during the annual nomination process.
“Elizabeth makes effective advocacy look easy. She is an expert communicator, a brilliant strategist, and an incredible litigator. She educates courts, attorneys, and clients alike in a way that renders the most complex of matters digestible. She is among the best of litigators in the industry.”
“Elizabeth is an excellent family law attorney. While she only brings four and a half years of experience to the table, she litigates like a seasoned veteran. Her knowledge of the law and extensive experience in the courtroom has resulted in exceptional case results. She is committed to achieving success for her clients, and she also carries a level of confidence in the courtroom that has proven to produce positive results.”
“Elizabeth is compassionate but at the same time tough. She connects with clients and helps them through one of the hardest transitions in life.”
“Elizabeth is among the best trial attorneys in the state. She is sharp and efficient and a master of strategy.”
“Elizabeth is one of the best trial attorneys in town. While I certainly carry a bias, as she is one of my business partners, this is an objective fact. Judicial officers have taken to referring friends and family to her after observing her in court. She is exacting, efficient, and creative. I would trust her with the wellbeing of my closest friends and family.”
“Elizabeth is an excellent lawyer.”
“Elizabeth Bonanno made partner at her law firm as one of the youngest ever to do so. She is bright, energetic, hard-working and learns new information quickly. She is a pleasure to work with.”
Office location for Elizabeth A. Bonanno
650 S Cherry St
Suite 500
Denver, CO 80246
Phone: 720-443-4892
Selections
- Super Lawyers: 2026 - 2027
- Rising Stars: 2017 - 2025
