Office of Attorney Regulation Counsel
An Independent Office of the Colorado Supreme Court
Promoting Professionalism. Protecting the Public.
Court Invites Comment on Proposed Changes to Rules Governing Licensed Legal Paraprofessionals (“LLPs”)The Colorado Supreme Court has published for public comment a proposal by the Advisory Committee on the Practice of Law and LLP Committee to revise LLPs’ scope of practice and clarify or update a number of provisions in C.R.C.P. 207.1, 207.8 and 207.14. Under the proposal, LLPs would continue to focus exclusively on domestic relations cases, but they would be allowed to elicit testimony in court and work with financial experts. This change would address feedback from judicial officers that it would be helpful to have LLPs authorized for more in-court practice, particularly when doing so could help avoid having pro se parties examine lay witnesses or experts. Other proposed changes would clarify scope of practice and educational requirements for licensure. The registration fees applicable to LLPs would be made consistent with those applicable to attorneys.The deadline to submit comments is September 29, 2025, at 4 p.m. A public hearing is scheduled for October 21, 2025, at 3:30 p.m. The deadline to request to speak at the public hearing is October 10, 2025, at 4 p.m. Please see below for instructions on how to submit public comments or a request to speak.Court Proposes Changes to Attorney and LLP Discipline Procedural RulesUpon the recommendation of the Advisory Committee on the Practice of Law, the Colorado Supreme Court is considering proposed changes to the procedural rules that govern OARC, the Advisory Committee, the Legal Regulation Committee, the Presiding Disciplinary Judge and the Supreme Court in the realm of attorney and LLP discipline. These rules (see C.R.C.P. 241 et seq.) establish the authorities of these entities, and generally govern how they handle complaints, investigations, diversions, stipulations, formal proceedings and appeals involving allegations that an attorney or LLP has violated the applicable rules of professional conduct. Many of the rule changes seek to clarify procedural steps or processes where questions have emerged over time.The deadline to submit public comments is October 27, 2025, at 4 p.m. A public hearing has been scheduled for November 19, 2025, at 3:30 p.m. The deadline to request to speak at public hearing is November 6, 2025, at 4 p.m. Please see below for instructions on how to submit public comments or a request to speak.Process for Submitting Public Comments to Proposed Rule ChangesPublic comments should be submitted in letter format addressed as follows: Colorado Supreme Court, 2 E. 14th Avenue, Denver, CO 80202. Public comments should be submitted by email in letter format as an attachment to the email as a Word or PDF document. Comments and speaking requests must be emailed to supremecourtrules@judicial.state.co.us. Both hearings are scheduled for the Supreme Court Courtroom.ABA Formal Opinion 517On July 9, 2025, the ABA Standing Committee on Ethics and Professional Responsibility issued ABA Formal Ethics Opinion 517 Discrimination in the Jury Selection Process. The Opinion examines the application of Model Rule 8.4(g) in relation to peremptory challenges. The Opinion discusses the following concepts: 1) use of unlawful discriminatory peremptory challenges is not legitimate advocacy under Model Rule 8.4(g); 2) Model Rule 8.4(g) applies only if the lawyer knew or reasonably should have known that the lawyer’s peremptory challenges were unlawful; 3) a trial judge’s finding of unlawful juror discrimination is not, alone, enough to prove a violation in a discipline proceeding; and 4) a lawyer does not violate Model Rule 8.4(g) by exercising peremptory challenges on a discriminatory basis that is not forbidden by other law. ABA Formal Opinion 517.Colorado’s version of Rule 8.4(g) is not identical to ABA Model Rule 8.4(g) and for purposes of reviewing this ABA Opinion, it’s important to note that Colo. RPC 8.4(g) does not include the “knew or should have known” language in the rule. Instead, Comment 3 to Colo. RPC 8.4(g) refers to a lawyer “knowingly” manifesting bias or prejudice. With respect to “legitimate advocacy” that language is also found in Comment 3 to Colo. RPC 8.4(g), rather than in the text of the rule, and is discussed in terms of compliance with Colo. RPC 8.4(d) and (g). On the topic of peremptory challenges, Colorado recently amended Crim. P. 24 to add a three-step analysis the trial court must use when there is an allegation a peremptory challenge is based on bias. The new rule becomes effective January 2, 2026. Colorado Participates in National Attorney Wellbeing SurveyAs you may have seen from an email announcement, 70 percent of Colorado licensed attorneys with active registrations have been invited to participate in a voluntary, anonymous survey about personal and professional wellbeing. The questions cover attorneys’ own wellbeing, their perspectives on why the legal profession can be very stressful, and how legal employers can help. Both state and national high-level aggregate data will inform the work of the Colorado Lawyer Assistance Program, the Colorado Attorney Mentoring Program, the Colorado Wellbeing Program for Legal Employers, OARC, and a variety of related state efforts in designing and implementing strategies to support attorneys in managing the negative impacts of practicing law and building strong foundations for making the practice of law more sustainable. If you received that invitation by email, please participate! Deadline Approaching for Prospective LLPs to Register for LLP Ethics ClassThe LLP Examination, which tests both family law and rules of professional conduct applicable to LLPs, will be held Tuesday, November 18, 2025. Each applicant for LLP licensure must successfully complete, from an accredited school, an ethics course (also known as a professional responsibility course) that teaches the rules of professional conduct applicable to LLPs or lawyers and addresses compliance as a condition of licensure. The Community College of Denver offers a course that meets this requirement. The deadline for registering is July 28, 2025, and the course starts August 4, 2025.After the November 2025 LLP Examination, the next LLP examination will occur in November 2026.Reconnecting with COLAPIf you haven’t utilized the Colorado Lawyer Assistance Program (COLAP), or it has been a while since you’ve checked out their services, now is a great time to review what COLAP has to offer. Executive Director Elizabeth Lembo discusses reasons you might contact COLAP, the services their office provides, and what you can expect when you reach out. She also introduces new members of the COLAP team. As a reminder, attorney and LLP registration fees fund COLAP so there is no additional cost for using those services.CAMP OFFERINGS FOR LLPsCAMP is for LLPs, too! Ryann Peyton, the Executive Director of the Colorado Attorney Mentoring Program and Legal Entrepreneurs for Justice, discusses new programming specifically tailored to licensed legal paraprofessionals
JULYJuly 29 and 30 July 2025 Bar Exam at the National Western ComplexAUGUSTAugust 1 November 2025 LLP application timely filing deadlineAugust 25 Practicing with Professionalism, CBA-CLE webinarSEPTEMBERSeptember 1 Application submission starts for the February 2026 Colorado Bar ExamSeptember 15 Practicing with Professionalism, CBA-CLE webinarSeptember 15 Lawyers, Investigators and the Rules of Professional Conduct,Professional Private Investigators Association of Colorado, Westminster (Justin P. Moore)September 18 Ethics Update, Boulder County Bar Association/Bench – Bar Retreat, CU Law School (Jessica Yates)OCTOBEROctober 13 Practicing with Professionalism, CBA-CLE webinar
