Sandra Hagen was born near Detroit, Michigan.  Through orders by the United States Air Force, her family was transferred to Grand Forks, North Dakota, where she was raised and attended Grand Forks Public Schools.  During school, she was active in gymnastics, basketball, ice skating, and track.  She also played piano and saxophone.  During high school, she attended American Legion Girls State.  After graduating from Red River High School, Sande attended the University of North Dakota, where she was a member of Delta Delta Delta sorority.  Prior to completing her degree, Sande had finally had it with the cold winters.  She left school and sought refuge in Miami, Florida, where she was a nanny for two attorneys.  The seed to one day work in the legal field was planted, but was delayed a bit after returning to North Dakota.  Once back in her home state, she was hired at a local bar and grill as a hostess.  From there, she rapidly moved through the ranks and her career in restaurant management was born.  Sande spent several years in the restaurant business before finally hanging it up to return to school.

Sande graduated from the University of North Dakota with a bachelor degree in sociology and a minor in history.  She was a member of Alpha Kappa Delta and Phi Alpha Theta honor societies.  She then attended and graduated from the University of North Dakota School of Law.  During law school, she was a member of Law Women’s Caucus and participated in moot court and law review.  During her second year, she was hired as a clerk for a busy criminal defense firm, where she primarily researched and drafted both motion and appellate briefs.  Sande’s first court appearance was before the North Dakota Supreme Court where, by virtue of North Dakota’s Third Year Practice Rule, she orally argued an appeal before the five justices of the North Dakota Supreme Court.

After graduating from law school, Sande relocated to Denver, Colorado.  She joined The Sawaya Law Firm in 2007 as an assistant to Robert Wilhite.  She has since become an associate with the litigation group and continues to work along side Rob Wilhite on a variety of cases, including automobile accidents, insurance bad faith, wrongful death, and trucking accidents.  Sande’s practice is 100% devoted to litigation.

Sande is a member of the Colorado Trial Lawyer’s Association, the Colorado Bar Association, and the Denver Bar Association.  Sande is licensed to practice in Colorado courts and the United States District Court for Colorado. 

In her spare time, Sande enjoys spending time with her family and devotes many winter weekends to rabidly following North Dakota Fighting Sioux hockey. 

If you feel you have a potential case in the Rocky Mountain Region, feel free to contact Sande or the staff at The Sawaya Law Firm to see how they may help you.