Somach Simmons & Dunn | Attorneys at Law
Ramsey Kropf’s career in water rights law has impacted some of the West’s most challenging water issues for over two decades. Her experience is built on a unique combination of high-level legal work in both the private and public sectors where she has successfully handled cases with far-reaching, national implications.
A shareholder in Somach Simmons & Dunn’s Boulder, Colorado office, Ramsey joined the firm in 2017 after completing an appointment as the Deputy Solicitor in the Water Resources Division of the U.S. Department of the Interior in Washington, D.C. She currently works on Colorado River issues,, mediating Indian water issues in New Mexico, working in Oregon’s Klamath Basin, along with other Colorado, regional, and interstate water matters. At Interior, she was the principal advisor to the Solicitor for all water resources issues, including Indian water rights settlements and litigation, reclamation law and water rights for the National Park Service. In her post, she was also Counsel to the Secretary, Secretariat offices, Bureaus and all Departmental officials regarding water law. Key matters she worked on included the Colorado River drought contingency planning negotiations, New Mexico’s Middle Rio Grande issues including a settlement between the Isleta Pueblo, the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District and the Bureau of Reclamation, numerous Indian water settlements and water settlements for both Arches and Bryce National Parks.
An accomplished background in the private sector bolsters her public sector work, where she spent seventeen years with the Patrick Miller Kropf Noto law firm based in Aspen, Colorado. Among her clients were municipalities, major resort developments and energy companies, and work as a judicial officer – serving as Special Master in Wyoming’s general stream adjudication. She is admitted to practice law in Colorado, Arizona and Wyoming as well as the Federal District Court, Colorado, and the United States Supreme Court. She has also served as Chair of the Water Resources Committee of the American Bar Association.
Throughout her career, her work has been bolstered by a keen understanding of all the varying sides of water law issues. Whether working for a developer to satisfy a municipal requirement for an adequate water supply, or working with public entities whose role is to plan for future water supply, she understands the varying perspectives of the West’s most pressing water supply and water rights challenges.
Ramsey grew up ski racing in Colorado’s Rocky Mountains, and continues to count powder days at ski resorts and by backcountry skiing in remote mountain areas — including stops at Tenth Mountain Huts.
