Tag: justice monica marquez
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Colorado lawmakers suggest chief justice’s request for new judges may be nonstarter
Some members of the legislature’s powerful budget committee cautioned Chief Justice Monica M. Márquez on Tuesday that it would be difficult to justify a spending increase for new judgeships in light of substantial cuts to be made elsewhere. Márquez appeared before the Joint Budget Committee to field questions about the Judicial Department’s $813.2 million budget request for the…
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2024 closes period of turnover on Colorado’s bench | YEAR IN REVIEW
New faces, new initiatives and a new judicial discipline process were among the developments in the third branch of government this year. Although much of the public’s focus was on the battle for the White House and Congress, several stories implicating the courts will have reverberations for years to come. Here is a look at…
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Colorado justices hear pleas to fix accommodations process for disabled bar applicants
Members of the Colorado Supreme Court heard from law students with disabilities last week that the process for pursuing accommodations on the bar exam is expensive, time-consuming and unfriendly — and a proposed rule change is only the first step to fixing the problem. “If this court chooses not to address these inequities, it effectively endorses…
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Colorado Supreme Court wary of requiring child welfare workers to give Miranda warnings prior to interrogations
Members of the Colorado Supreme Court seemed hesitant on Wednesday to endorse the idea that child welfare workers must provide a Miranda warning before interrogating a parent in custody, even if the conversation will later be used in a criminal prosecution. The state’s Court of Appeals previously upheld the murder convictions of two men, both…
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‘Chutzpah’: Colorado justices raise eyebrows at Weld County’s assertion it can evade redistricting law
Members of the Colorado Supreme Court appeared incredulous on Wednesday as a lawyer for Weld County argued the jurisdiction did not need to follow the state’s redistricting law, maintained it should not have to redraw its commissioner districts for nine more years, and declined to say whether the county would even comply with a Supreme…
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Colorado justices rule plaintiffs can use open records law for evidence when suing government
The Colorado Supreme Court decided on Monday that nothing in the state’s open records law prevents a person from seeking documents from public entities at the same time they are suing the government in court. Although the justices agreed that a plaintiff properly used the Colorado Open Records Act (CORA) to seek a tape recording…
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Colorado Supreme Court rebuffs AG’s plea to scrap restitution ruling while remaining open to tweaks
During a marathon session of oral arguments on Tuesday, members of the Colorado Supreme Court appeared open to tweaking their landmark 2021 decision warning trial judges and prosecutors to follow the law when awarding restitution to crime victims. But the justices quickly gave the Colorado Attorney General’s Office a reality check, indicating the Supreme Court…
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Colorado Supreme Court considers whether refunds available for CSU’s pandemic campus closure
The Colorado Supreme Court considered on Wednesday whether students at Colorado State University had a viable claim for refunds after the school closed its campus temporarily during the COVID-19 pandemic while still retaining their fees. On behalf of all people who paid student tuition and fees during the spring 2020 semester, Renee Alderman sued CSU…
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Colorado’s chief justice requests 28 new judges, warns of widespread courtroom disruption
The state’s judicial branch is asking lawmakers to establish 28 new judgeships over two years to help ease caseloads and combat burnout among existing judges, Chief Justice Monica M. Márquez told an audience of attorneys on Thursday. Speaking at the Colorado Bar Association’s headquarters, Márquez also provided details about the rash of disruptions caused by malicious actors…
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‘It was my duty’: Colorado chief justice speaks out about Trump disqualification vote
Chief Justice Monica M. Márquez spoke haltingly and emotionally on Thursday night about her awareness of the risks she was taking when she joined a Colorado Supreme Court decision last December finding Donald Trump constitutionally disqualified from appearing on the state’s ballot. “I want to emphasize: I did not relish that vote at all. I cast…