Compassionate, experienced
Meet our team
Tierney Tobin Maris
Managing Attorney
Tierney graduated from Bates College in 2009, where she earned her B.A. in Interdisciplinary Studies. She later received her M.A. in International Education Development from Columbia University Teachers College. While pursuing her masters, Tierney spent time in Thailand working with a small non-profit organization called Kwah Dao, providing educational opportunities to Burmese Shan youth.
After completing her degree, Tierney moved back to Thailand to manage Kwah Dao’s pre-school and kindergarten program. It was during her time in Thailand that Tierney grew passionate about legal issues and migration. She eventually returned to the United States to go to law school, focusing on immigration law.
Tierney attended Colorado Law in Boulder, Colorado. She started working with Lisa Green in 2016, while still in law school. After graduating in the top ten percent of her class in 2018, she joined the team at Maris Immigration Law as an associate attorney.
In 2021, Tierney became the managing attorney of Green & Maris. She joined the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) in 2018 and served as the AILA Colorado Asylum Committee co-chair in both 2020-2021 and 2021-2022.
Education
University of Colorado
J.D. Law
Columbia University
M.A. International Education Development
Bates College
B.A. Interdisciplinary Studies
Activities & Affiliations
- Member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA)
- Co-Chair of the AILA Colorado Asylum Committee 2020-2021
- Co-Chair of the AILA Colorado Asylum Committee 2021-2022
- Admitted to Colorado Bar
Tierney Tobin Maris
Managing Attorney
Marlise (Mar) Armstrong
Attorney
After growing up in Hawaii and graduating from McGill University in Montreal, Mar Armstrong worked with a network of community centers throughout the Middle East, where her passion for helping resilient refugees find stability, security, and peace was ignited. During law school, Mar completed internships with the Harvard Immigrant and Refugee Clinic, the East Bay Community Law Center, the National Immigration Law Center, and the Post-Deportation Human Rights Project.
Mar graduated with high honors from Northeastern University School of Law in 2016. The following year, she served as a Justice AmeriCorps Fellow at Catholic Charities, representing unaccompanied children before the Denver Immigration Court. Upon completing her fellowship, Mar opened her own practice to assist young people seeking asylum and special immigrant juvenile status.
Mar is honored to be able to continue representing incredible clients as a member of the team at Green & Maris, where she has worked since February 2019. She is proficient in Spanish.
Education
Norteastern University
J.D. Law
McGill University
B.A. Philosophy and Psychology
Activities & Affiliations
- American Immigration Lawyers Association
- Co-Chair of the AILA Colorado Asylum Committee 2020-2021
- Admitted to Colorado Bar
Marlise (Mar) Armstrong
Attorney
Clara Grainger
Attorney
Clara first joined the firm in 2016, working for Lisa Green as an intern, legal assistant, and paralegal before attending law school. The incredible clients and colleagues she worked with inspired her to pursue her law degree. She earned her J.D. from the University of Colorado, where she graduated in the top ten percent of her class and completed over 400 hours of pro bono legal work. During law school, Clara focused on immigration law, refugee and asylum law, and international law. She also worked as a student attorney in the Juvenile & Family Law Clinic, where she represented clients in juvenile and civil court. As a student attorney, Clara gained experience in Special Immigrant Juvenile Status cases, custody disputes, and addiction and housing issues. She also completed legal internships at Green & Maris and the Rocky Mountain Immigrant Advocacy Network (RMIAN).
Throughout the years as a paralegal, law student, and attorney, Clara has worked on the representation of clients at U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR), the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA), the federal court for the District of Colorado, and various Colorado state courts. She is honored to continue advocating for immigrants with the talented and compassionate team at Maris Immigration Law.
As a lifelong Coloradoan, Clara spends her free time hiking, backpacking, and traveling with friends and family. She is proficient in Spanish.
Education
University of Colorado - Boulder
J.D. Law
University of Colorado - Boulder
B.A. International Affairs
Activities and Affiliations
- Admitted to the Colorado Bar
- American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) member
- AILA Colorado EOIR Liaison Committee member
- Colorado Lawyers Committee Young Lawyers Division member
- Denver Legal Night Steering Committee member
Clara Grainger
Attorney
Alyssa Ortiz
Attorney
Alyssa received her J.D. in 2023 from the University of Colorado. During law school, she was Editor-in-Chief of the University of Colorado Law Review as well as President of the Immigration Law & Policy Society. Alyssa's passions are removal defense and the intersection of immigration and criminal law. She focused her studies on immigration and criminal law, including working as a student attorney with the Immigration & Criminal Defense Clinic and completing courses in immigration law, criminal procedure, wrongful convictions, and international human rights.
Prior to law school, Alyssa was introduced to immigration law as an intern with the International Rescue Committee (IRC). Her work with refugees at the IRC deeply impacted and inspired her to become an advocate for immigrants. She worked as a paralegal with immigration law firms in Seattle, Washington, and Phoenix, Arizona before moving to Colorado for law school. Alyssa is now thrilled to be joining the team at Green & Maris.
Originally from Arizona, Alyssa loves the sun, summer weather, gardening, and cooking.
Alyssa Ortiz
Attorney
Megan Berkower
Paralegal
Megan graduated in 2011 with an Associate of Applied Science Degree in Paralegal Studies. Megan works on many different types of cases including asylum, cancellation of removal, naturalization, DACA, family-based petitions, National Visa Center and consular processing, adjustment of status, removal proceedings, employment authorization and certain types of employment-based petitions.
Megan’s exceptional organizational skills and attention to detail are evident not only to the staff at Green & Maris, but to all our clients. Megan loves to work in the field of immigration law as it gives her an opportunity to work closely with clients on a daily basis and have a positive impact on their lives. Megan, a native of Boulder, Colorado, enjoys playing guitar, cooking and the outdoors. She has worked with Lisa Green since 2010.
Education
University of Colorado
A.A.S. Paralegal Studies
Megan Berkower
Paralegal
Kate Jung
Paralegal
Kate studied Political Science at the University of Notre Dame. Following graduation, she taught math to high school students in underrepresented neighborhoods of Chicago, where she learned to love working with students and her daily commute on the “L.” Kate then worked as a legal assistant at an immigration and general practice law firm that mainly served Koreans and Korean Americans. It was a valuable experience for her to work directly with her community members in Chicago.
Kate moved to Colorado in 2020 and briefly worked as a data organizer during the general election season. She has been a part of the team at Green & Maris since late November 2021 and is excited to serve the diverse needs of those seeking to immigrate to the United States. Kate is fluent in Korean.
Education
University of Notre Dame
B.A. Political Science, Minors in Italian and Studio Art
Kate Jung
Paralegal
Fernanda Ortega Canales
Paralegal
Fernanda has taken a serendipitous path from being an accomplished fashion designer in Ciudad de México to her Paralegal studies in Colorado, a place she has been proud to call home since 2008. As someone who has personally experienced the U.S. immigration process, from initial application to citizenship, Fernanda is intimately familiar with the immigration journey. She is passionate about helping people navigate the process with clarity, empathy, and kindness.
Fernanda has enthusiastically embraced the Colorado lifestyle and has become an avid hiker, mountain biker, and distance runner. When not studying or working, she can be found training on Boulder’s numerous running paths for her favorite distance – the half marathon. Fernanda is bilingual in Spanish and English.
Education
University Autonoma de Guadalajara
B.A. Business of Fashion, Design, and Technology
Front Range Community College
Paralegal Studies - AA Degree Program (expected completion 2023)
Fernanda Ortega Canales
Paralegal
Claudia Sanchez
Paralegal
Claudia began working in the field of law even before graduating from Metropolitan State University of Denver in 2021. She started as a legal assistant in a boutique firm that handled family law, and she quickly discovered her passion for helping others. Coming from a first-generation immigrant family, she felt inspired to continue her paralegal career in immigration law.
Her family’s first-hand experience with the immigration system has ignited her passion for immigration law and fuels her unwavering commitment to assisting others on their own immigration journeys. With a heart full of empathy, Claudia dedicates herself to serving clients with compassion. Claudia is bilingual in Spanish and English.
Originally from Central Texas, Claudia loves traveling, yoga, and Colorado fall weather.
Education
Metropolitan State University of Denver
B.A Journalism, Minor in Environmental Science
Claudia Sanchez
Paralegal
Sara Williams-Mann
Office Manager
Sara Williams-Mann graduated with a law degree from the University of Colorado School of Law in 1994, in the top ten percent of her class. Following graduation, she worked for Stern and Elkind, a Denver immigration law firm, specializing in asylum law and various aspects of employment-related immigration law.
While an attorney with Stern and Elkind, Sara not only enjoyed a successful practice representing foreign nationals with immigration applications, but she worked closely with Lisa Green. As Office Manager at Green & Maris, Sara is able to combine her love for the field of immigration law with a position in management. Sara has worked with Lisa Green since 2012.
Education
University of Colorado
J.D. Law
Evergreen State College
B.A. Interdisciplinary Studies
Sara Williams-Mann
Office Manager
