Colorado has established itself as one of the most worker-protective states in the Mountain West, with a rapidly evolving employment law framework that has transformed the legal landscape for Colorado workers over the past several years. The Colorado Equal Pay for Equal Work Act — EPEWA — requiring salary range transparency in job postings has created significant compliance challenges for Colorado employers and new transparency rights for employees. The Colorado FAMLI Act’s paid family and medical leave program, the Colorado Overtime and Minimum Pay Standards Order — COMPS Order — which imposes overtime requirements on most Colorado workers beyond what federal FLSA requires, and Colorado’s comprehensive Anti-Discrimination Act together create a state employment law framework that provides substantially greater worker protections than most neighboring states.
Denver serves as Colorado’s dominant employment law market, but Colorado Springs, Boulder, Fort Collins, and other growing Colorado communities also generate significant employment law activity that requires attorneys comfortable practicing across the entire state. The District of Colorado federal court in Denver handles federal employment cases from across the state, and the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals reviews federal employment decisions from Colorado — creating a judicial framework that experienced Colorado employment attorneys understand intimately.
1. David H. Miller — Sawaya Law Firm
- Address: 4500 Cherry Creek S Dr Ste 1030, Denver, CO 80246, United States
- Phone: +17027667908
David Miller is one of Colorado’s most recognized and accomplished plaintiff-side employment attorneys, with a practice at the Sawaya Law Firm that has achieved significant results for Colorado workers in discrimination, harassment, retaliation, wrongful termination, and FMLA cases throughout the state. Miller has been recognized by Super Lawyers Colorado in employment law for multiple consecutive years — reflecting sustained peer recognition from Colorado’s legal community for the consistent quality and impact of his work.
Miller’s practice encompasses the full range of federal and Colorado state employment law claims — Title VII, the ADEA, the ADAAA, the FMLA, the FLSA, the Colorado Anti-Discrimination Act — CADA — and the Colorado Equal Pay for Equal Work Act — giving his clients comprehensive coverage of both federal protections and Colorado’s increasingly robust state employment law framework. His deep familiarity with Colorado’s new pay equity and pay transparency requirements provides particular value for Colorado workers asserting Equal Pay Act claims under the state’s stronger-than-federal standard.
His experience before the Colorado Civil Rights Division — the state administrative agency that processes CADA discrimination charges — and in the District of Colorado federal court reflects the comprehensive procedural knowledge that effective Colorado employment representation requires. His decades of Colorado employment law practice have produced the kind of deep institutional knowledge, judicial familiarity, and strategic insight that newer practitioners cannot replicate.
2. Mari Newman — Killmer Lane and Newman LLP
- Address:
- Phone: +17208505770
Mari Newman is one of Denver’s most prominent and nationally recognized civil rights and employment law attorneys, with a practice at Killmer Lane and Newman that has achieved landmark results in civil rights and employment cases that have shaped the legal landscape for worker protections in Colorado and the Tenth Circuit. Newman has been recognized by Super Lawyers Colorado in civil rights litigation and employment law and has been involved in cases that have attracted national attention for their impact on the development of federal civil rights and employment law.
Newman’s practice encompasses employment discrimination, First Amendment retaliation by government employers, ADA claims, and civil rights violations — reflecting the breadth of civil rights expertise that distinguishes her from employment attorneys with narrower practice focuses. Her willingness to take on the most challenging cases — including cases against powerful government entities and major Colorado corporations — reflects the professional courage and commitment to civil rights that define the most impactful plaintiff-side advocates.
Her Tenth Circuit appellate experience reflects the highest level of advocacy sophistication, and her involvement in cases that have produced binding Tenth Circuit precedents affecting Colorado workers represents the most meaningful contribution to employment law development that any practitioner can make. For Colorado workers facing the most difficult employment law circumstances, Newman represents one of the strongest available advocates in the entire state.
3. John R. Crone — Anderson and Carr
- Address:
- Phone:
John Crone is a respected Denver employment attorney whose practice focuses on representing employees in discrimination, harassment, retaliation, and wage and hour cases throughout Colorado. Crone has developed recognition in the Colorado employment law community for his thorough approach to case development, his commitment to genuine client service, and his effective advocacy in both the Colorado Civil Rights Division administrative process and the District of Colorado federal court.
His practice encompasses claims under CADA, Title VII, the ADEA, the ADAAA, the FMLA, the FLSA, and the Colorado COMPS Order — giving clients comprehensive coverage of both federal and state employment law protections in Colorado’s increasingly protective legal environment. His familiarity with Colorado’s new Equal Pay for Equal Work Act and the specific compliance and litigation issues it generates provides particular value for Colorado workers asserting pay equity claims in a state where the statutory framework exceeds federal EPA requirements.
His commitment to making quality employment law representation accessible to Colorado workers across economic backgrounds reflects the democratic values that define genuinely worker-centered employment law practices.
4. Darold Killmer — Killmer Lane and Newman LLP
- Address: 1543 Champa St Ste 400, Denver, CO 80202, United States
- Phone: +13035711000
Darold Killmer is a founding partner of Killmer Lane and Newman and one of the most experienced civil rights and employment law attorneys in Colorado, with decades of practice that have produced landmark results for Colorado workers and civil rights claimants. Killmer has been recognized by Super Lawyers Colorado for many years and has been involved in cases that have produced significant legal precedents in both the Tenth Circuit and the Colorado state courts.
His deep experience in the District of Colorado and his long-standing relationships within the Colorado legal community reflect the career trajectory of an attorney who has spent decades at the forefront of civil rights and employment law advocacy in the region. His firm’s combined civil rights and employment expertise creates a practice uniquely equipped to handle the most complex intersections of constitutional law and employment rights that arise in Colorado cases.
His particular depth in cases involving government employer defendants — including state agencies, municipal governments, school districts, and universities — reflects specialized knowledge of the constitutional employment law framework that public sector employment disputes require, and his expertise is of particular value for Colorado’s large government workforce.
5. Paula Greisen — King and Greisen LLP
- Address: 518 17th St Unit 1100, Denver, CO 80202, United States
- Phone: +13039913075
Paula Greisen is one of Denver’s most distinguished civil rights and employment attorneys, with a practice at King and Greisen that has achieved landmark results in employment discrimination, civil rights, and class action cases throughout Colorado. Greisen has been recognized by Super Lawyers Colorado and Best Lawyers in America — reflecting the sustained peer recognition that comes from consistently excellent, high-impact work over a distinguished career.
Greisen’s class action employment litigation expertise — representing groups of workers in systematic discrimination and wage cases — provides Colorado workers with access to a level of collective legal action that individual plaintiff employment practices cannot match. Her involvement in significant Colorado class action employment cases has demonstrated the power of aggregate litigation to hold major employers accountable for systematic workplace discrimination and wage violations that would be economically impractical to challenge through individual representation.
Her firm King and Greisen’s reputation as one of Colorado’s premier plaintiff-side civil rights practices reflects the consistent quality of results and the genuine commitment to advancing civil rights through legal advocacy that defines the best employment and civil rights practices in any state.
