Kris grew up in Reno. Her father Dr. Donald Pickering was a pediatrician who worked with the then-brand new University of Nevada Medical School. She gained her deep love for Nevada watching him travel across northern rural Nevada to tend to critically ill children and bring them to Reno for treatment.

She graduated from Reno High School and was named Presidential Scholar from Nevada and National Merit Scholar, receiving a four year college scholarship.

Kris went to Yale University, graduating cum laude. She attended Georgetown University Law Center and graduated from the University of California, Davis Law School as one of the top five students in her class. She served as an editor of the Law Review and received multiple academic awards, including election to the legal honor society, Order of the Coif.

After law school Kris returned to Reno to clerk for United States District Judge Bruce Thompson, for whom the Federal Building in Reno is named. She began legal practice in Reno and in 1992 moved to Las Vegas and, with her husband, Steve Morris, founded their own firm, Morris Pickering & Peterson. The firm has offices in Reno and Las Vegas and specializes in civil litigation.

Kris and her husband have an extended family in Las Vegas, with sons Greg Morris and Steve Morris, Jr., their wives and children.

Kris and her husband enjoy exploring rural Nevada with their border collies. She is an accomplished athlete, running the Las Vegas full (PR 3:38:11) and half marathons (PR 1:35:27) and completing several triathlons.