Nicole Johnson is an Associate Attorney at McConaughy & Sarkissian, P.C. in Denver, Colorado, where she focuses her practice on construction defect defense, insurance coverage and bad faith litigation, and complex civil litigation. She represents clients in construction defect disputes and related contract claims and brings to that work a background in insurance law and dispute resolution that is genuinely rare among construction litigators at any level of experience.
Before becoming an attorney, Ms. Johnson worked directly inside the insurance industry in Austin Texas, first as a Claims Adjuster for a multi-line insurer, where she investigated, evaluated, negotiated, and settled both bodily injury and property damage claims, and then as an Arbitration Specialist for an insurer group, where she served as a neutral decision-maker in arbitration disputes and defended insureds against adverse carrier claims. That progression — from claims adjuster to neutral arbitrator to attorney — means Ms. Johnson has evaluated construction and insurance disputes from every possible vantage point. She understands how insurers analyze exposure, how claims are evaluated internally, how arbitration decisions are made, and what it takes to present a case that succeeds at each stage. In construction defect defense, where insurance coverage, bad faith exposure, and carrier relationships are central to nearly every matter, her perspective is a significant asset for clients and the insurers who retain the firm.
After transitioning to law, Ms. Johnson earned her Juris Doctor from Emory University School of Law in 2023, where she distinguished herself academically and as a legal scholar. She served as a Notes and Comments Editor for the Emory Law Journal, and her student Comment was selected for publication in the journal’s 72nd Volume, a competitive honor reflecting both the quality of her legal writing and the depth of her analytical work. During law school she completed internships with the Honorable Thomas A. Cox of the Superior Court of Fulton County, the Georgia Senate, and the U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights, gaining exposure to the judiciary, the legislative process, and federal regulatory enforcement. She began her legal career in Atlanta, Georgia, where she practiced insurance coverage and defense, with a particular emphasis on bad faith claims and coverage disputes, before relocating to Colorado and joining McConaughy & Sarkissian.
Ms. Johnson has demonstrated a consistent commitment to pro bono service throughout her career. At Emory, she drafted medical reviews and appellate briefs for veterans seeking disability benefits and discharge upgrades through the Emory Volunteer Clinic for Veterans. She has also completed pro bono work assisting refugees through Rainbow Railroad, an organization that helps LGBTQ+ people escape state-sponsored violence and persecution. Ms. Johnson is admitted to practice law in Colorado and Georgia.
Outside the office, Ms. Johnson is making the most of life in Colorado — hiking, snowboarding, and exploring everything the state has to offer.
