We are currently on Step 3 of the 2025 Membership Process. The feedback poll has closed and the Executive Committee is reviewing the results and will be contacting those who requested a callback in the coming weeks.

New Trial Requirement: 7 Trials + 100 Points

On October 26, 2024, new minimum trial requirements for membership were approved at the National Board Meeting in Nashville which decreased the number of civil jury trials needed from 10 to 7 but requires additional trial experience from a combination of longer trials, criminal felony trials, and other methods. New members must now have a minimum of 7 civil jury trials to verdict or hung jury AND 100 points on the existing point system used for rank advancements. 

Law Day: Commemorating the Constitution at our County Courthouses

Dear Colleagues:

On May 1st —Law Day—we invite you to join lawyers across Colorado in a powerful, united act: reading the United States Constitution (and historical statements about it) aloud on the steps of your local courthouse. At a time when the rule of law is under daily assault, there is an urgent need for us to stand united in support of the United States Constitution and the Rule of Law. Those of us in Denver will be gathering in front of the City and County Building, 1427 Bannock Street, east side steps, at noon.

Join fellow attorneys, judges, and community members in support of the bedrock American principles of the Rule of Law, the independence of the judiciary, the protection of attorneys and law firms from unlawful attacks, due process of law, and freedom of speech and association.

What You Can Do:

• Organize a short gathering outside your county courthouse at noon on May 1 st, or simply gather a few colleagues and go to the courthouse steps. (Check with the Chief Judge, Presiding Judge or Court Administrator for the District or County Court in your County.)
  
  
• Read the Constitution aloud (individually, as a group, or round-robin style).
  
  
• Invite colleagues, friends, and members of the public to join.
  
  
• Share photos and reflections on social media using #LawDayCO.
  
  
• Forward this email to your professional and personal networks—especially to lawyers and legal professionals in counties other than your own across Colorado.

To obtain a free copy of the Constitution, go to https://www.americanbar.org/groups/public_education/programs/constitution_day/constitution-text/

If you plan to participate or would like help organizing in your county, please email us at COLawday@gmail.com. We will do our best to provide updates via email and on our website www.COLawday.com

As lawyers, we are guardians of the Constitution. On Law Day, let’s show Colorado – and the country – that we take that role seriously. We look forward to hearing from you and seeing pictures from every county courthouse in Colorado on May 1, 2025!

Hon. Gary Jackson, ret’d
Lorraine Parker, Pat Ridley & Mary A. Wells

ABOTA, IATL, ISOB, NBA, AND NBTA
ISSUE JOINT STATEMENT DEFENDING THE RULE OF LAW AMID RISING ATTACKS ON THE JUDICIARY AND LEGAL PROFESSION

For over two centuries, the United States has been a beacon of democracy and justice, grounded in the unwavering principle that no individual is above the law. Today, that foundational principle faces a direct assault—not from foreign adversaries but from within. The current administration has engaged in an unprecedented campaign to undermine the rule of law, attack the judiciary, violate court orders, and punish lawyers and law firms for doing their jobs.

Throughout history, authoritarian regimes have understood that the first step in dismantling democracy is silencing those who uphold the rule of law. When the legal system is weakened—when judges are threatened, when lawyers are punished for representing their clients, when court rulings are ignored—tyranny is not far behind. Today, we are witnessing such a moment in America.

The current administration and other officials have not only attacked individual judges for their rulings but have actively encouraged efforts to impeach them. These threats represent more than partisan rhetoric—they are a dangerous attempt to intimidate the judiciary and erode its independence. When the administration signals that court rulings can be ignored or that judges should be removed for doing their jobs, the very foundation of our legal system is at risk.

The attacks have now escalated beyond the courts to the legal profession itself. The administration has singled out law firms by revoking security clearances, directing agencies to terminate contracts, and prohibiting federal employees from engaging with them. These measures are political retribution, plain and simple—an attempt to punish lawyers and firms for representing clients and causes the administration disfavors.

This moment demands action. Regardless of practice area, political affiliation, or position, lawyers must unite in defense of the rule of law. The legal profession exists to serve justice—not political interests. We cannot and will not capitulate in the face of bullying, intimidation, and outright attacks on the institutions that ensure democracy endures.

This is a defining moment—not just for our profession but for our country. History will remember where we stood at this moment.

We stand as unwavering defenders of the rule of law, democracy, and moral integrity. We reject the idea that the justice system is corrupt simply because it holds the powerful accountable. We reject the rhetoric that seeks to delegitimize the courts, the legal profession, and the rule of law itself.

Now is the time for every lawyer—whether in private practice, public service, academia, or corporate counsel—to step forward. The law does not protect itself; it survives because those sworn to uphold it have the courage to do so.

We must volunteer, agitate, use our legal training, and raise our voices to fight against the dismantling of our justice system. We must uphold the principles of fairness and accountability, even when it is difficult, unpopular, or dangerous. We must be relentless in this fight, doing whatever it takes. This is not just a fight for our profession—it is a fight for our country. We will not yield. We will not be silent. We will not stop.

These organizations pledge to continue fighting to safeguard our Constitution and the Rule of Law. We call on all legal organizations to stand strong with us and support our position.

The American Board of Trial Advocates Supports the
Rule of Law Against Dangerous Criticisms of the Judiciary

The highest authority in our country is not the offices of the President or Vice President; our Nation is founded on the premise that the highest authority in the land is the law. Our strength depends on the supremacy of the Rule of Law.

The American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA) is staunchly committed to defending judges from unwarranted threats and to upholding the Rule of Law. Several recent statements issued by the Executive Office suggest that judges don't have jurisdiction over President Trump's decisions and executive orders. The public comments made by President Trump, Vice President Vance and Elon Musk, head of the Department of Government Efficiency, which included personal attacks on judges, labeling judges as “corrupt,” and calls for impeachment of judges with whom they disagree, are contrary to the clear design of our constitutional architecture that ensures that our government is a limited one with each branch held in check by robust separation of powers.

Courts have temporarily halted a number of the recent Executive Orders on the grounds that they exceed the rightful bounds of the limits of the executive branch and encroach on the powers vested exclusively in the legislative branch of our government. The Executive Office and Elon Musk have responded that they may disregard the rulings of the courts. Such statements are impudent and wholly incompatible with the Constitution, which these officials all swore to uphold. Further, such bullying comments demean the judiciary and erode the public’s confidence in our judicial system and, ultimately, our democracy. ABOTA condemns these statements and tactics of our executive branch.

Some may ask: “Why is it so harmful when the judicial branch is demeaned or disregarded?” Our strength as a Nation is based on our freedom from oppression by government action. We, the people, through our consent set forth in the Constitution, granted enumerated and limited powers to the executive branch and empowered the judicial branch to make sure the actions of the executive branch do not exceed or abuse the authority of the office. Attacks on judges and the courts they serve threaten judicial independence, which is essential to sound decisions that maintain the balance of power. Simply put, if anyone can defy a court order, then everyone can defy a court order. If the limitations on the power of the executive branch can be set aside and abused under the guise of exposing corruption and fraud, they can be set aside and abused similarly for any purpose whatsoever.

“To whom much is given, much is required” reminds us all of the responsibility that comes with privilege and power. President Trump and Vice President Vance have been given great authority by the American people to discharge their duties of office, but with that authority comes the obligation to exercise it within the proper bounds established so wisely by our founders and set forth so eloquently in the Constitution. And our President has given great authority to Elon Musk, the owner of a major online platform company. As such, Mr. Musk is also tasked to act with great responsibility in his service to the American people and not to act irreverently or with bullying, political tactics designed to place our judges in personal danger if their decisions do not conform to the executive branch’s wishes. A profound and unalterable reverence for the Constitution and its structured balance of power should reside deeply rooted in the hearts and minds of all those who hold powerful governmental offices, indeed in all of us who are privileged to be citizens of this great Nation. Comments like those that we have seen recently about the judges and their decisions portray a lack of reverence for the Rule of Law and reflect poorly on those who utter them and, in turn, on our country.

ABOTA realizes and acknowledges that our country is not immune to spirited legal and political controversy. As lawyers, our members embrace, on a daily basis, the fact that opinions and positions will differ. To be sure, the country is founded in part on the idea of the freedom to dissent, but we recognize and revere our system of justice that is imbued with the weighty responsibility of resolving those disputes. We must safeguard the independence of that judicial system with vigilance. Our courts stand as the primary sentinels, guardians, and protectors of our liberty from excesses of power by the other branches of our government. In performing their jobs, judges deserve the respect of all in our society, most of all by those who have been placed in positions of power. We, as an organization of trial lawyers, stand against all forms of intimidation of our judges and against all efforts to diminish the supremacy of the Rule of Law.

Jennifer H. Doan
National President
American Board of Trial Advocates