Tag: justice monica marquez
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Colorado justices say utilities commission overreached by immunizing Xcel in rate document
Xcel Energy cannot rely upon a rate-setting document to broadly immunize itself from liability against electrocutions, the Colorado Supreme Court ruled on Monday. The justices originally heard the electrocution-related lawsuit from Francisco Cuevas to decide whether Xcel’s tariff, which sets the rates and terms of service for its customers, shielded the utility from liability when…
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Colorado justices wary of expanding rezoning by ballot initiative
The Colorado Supreme Court appeared wary on Wednesday of allowing rezonings of planned-unit developments to occur through a vote at the ballot box, rather than a municipality’s detailed review process that accounts for specific factors. In contrast to traditional, or “Euclidean,” zoning that separates land uses by type, planned-unit developments are based on negotiated agreements on…
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State Supreme Court oral arguments, discipline case resolved | COURT CRAWL
Welcome to Court Crawl, Colorado Politics’ roundup of news from the third branch of government. The state Supreme Court will hear oral arguments this week, plus disciplinary authorities resolved the misconduct case against a San Miguel County judge. At the Supreme Court • The Colorado Supreme Court has four cases on its docket this Wednesday. They…
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Colorado lawmakers hear from chief justice about security needs, new judges
Chief Justice Monica M. Márquez asked members of the legislature’s Joint Budget Committee on Tuesday to stay the course and fund the 10 new trial judgeships that Colorado lawmakers approved last year, and also explained her vision for enhancing judicial branch security. Responding to questions generated by committee members after a hearing last month on…
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Appeals judge believes children’s representatives may challenge certain parental rights decisions
A member of Colorado’s second-highest court argued on Wednesday that, despite a recent state Supreme Court ruling prohibiting anyone other than the government from pursuing child-welfare cases, a child’s legal representative may still appeal certain decisions. By 2-1, a three-judge Court of Appeals panel decided it could not review a trial judge’s decision out of…
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2025 Unfiltered: Colorado Supreme Court vacancy, surge in federal filings and more
This year was awash in legal news nationally, with federal courts taking an outsize role in responding to executive branch actions. In Colorado, that effect was evident, but it was not the only factor at play. Here are the top developments in 2025 from the state and federal judiciaries. Unexpected vacancy There was an unusual,…
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‘Lawyers haven’t gotten the message’: Colorado justices hear debate about proposed AI rule
The Colorado Supreme Court heard comments from members of the legal profession last week about a proposed rule change intended to remind attorneys that misuse of new artificial intelligence tools can violate longstanding professional obligations. Court of Appeals Judge Lino S. Lipinsky de Orlov, who chairs the Rules of Professional Conduct Standing Committee, told the…
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Colorado Supreme Court holds municipal sentences may not be greater for identical state crimes
The Colorado Supreme Court ruled on Monday that municipalities may not subject defendants to sentences that are harsher under their own ordinances than for identical offenses under state law. In the Dec. 22 opinion, Chief Justice Monica M. Márquez noted localities are free to prosecute defendants in municipal court for crimes that could also be…
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Justice Melissa Hart to step down from Colorado Supreme Court
Justice Melissa Hart will step down from the Colorado Supreme Court effective Jan. 5, the Judicial Department announced unexpectedly on Friday. Hart has been on an unexplained and unusual leave of absence from the court since Oct. 28. She told Colorado Politics in November that the leave was for “family and personal health reasons” but provided no…
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Justices debate what to do when governments withhold key info from plaintiffs
Members of the Colorado Supreme Court seemed to be on different pages when they considered on Tuesday whether a woman injured by a sidewalk defect in Manitou Springs was forever barred from suing the actual entity responsible because she did not learn until it was too late that Colorado Springs was the proper defendant. The…