Our Courts Colorado

 Our Courts wins national award for public education program

The Colorado Bar Association and Colorado Judicial Institute won the American Bar Association’s 2010 Burnham “Hod” Greeley Award. The ABA’s Coalition for Justice reviewed nominations received last fall from around the country. Judges evaluated the nominations for significant, positive impacts on public understanding of the role of the judiciary in a democratic society and for ability to convey the importance of the judiciary’s role in the rule of law. The award recognizes extraordinary outreach efforts that show the public the need for a fair and impartial judiciary 

Official Press Release

The Learned Lawyer

Our Courts is a joint activity of the Colorado Judicial Institute and the Colorado Bar Association that provides nonpartisan information programs to adult audiences around the state to further public knowledge and understanding of the state and federal courts in Colorado.

Our Courts presentations address the role of fair and impartial courts in applying and preserving the rule of law.  All programs are free of charge.  Three new presentations will be rolled out Fall of 2009.   

Available FREE presentations:

• New! Lincoln’s Legacy of Equality & Liberty.  To commemorate the 200th anniversary of Abraham Lincoln’s birth, Our Courts speakers are available to make a 25-minute presentation that uses Lincoln’s own words and the words of those who knew him to explain how Lincoln’s commitment to the principles of equality and liberty transformed our nation.
• "Our State Courts" -- how Colorado's procedures for selecting, disciplining, and evaluating judges keep our state courts fair and impartial.  This presentation is available in Spanish. 
• "Our United States Courts" -- the types of cases that are heard in the federal courts and the procedures that keep our federal courts fair and impartial. 

Our Courts presentations and presenters take no position regarding any court case, legislation, ballot issue, or proposed change to the court system.

Our Courts actively reach out to potential audiences through:

• Community leadership programs
• Business and economic development associations
• Professional and trade associations
• Service organizations
• Community colleges, undergraduate and graduate schools, and vocational schools
• Libraries
• Other community organizations

The Our Courts program was founded in September 2007.  Volunteer attorneys and judges have been to 34 communities in Colorado and 1 in Wyoming.  As of June 2009, 167 presentations have been made to almost 6,000 people in the state of Colorado and Wyoming. This program has been acknowledged both regionally and nationally.  Click here to read a letter congratulating the programs remarkable success from United States Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor.

To schedule a presentation or to learn more, contact Carolyn Gravit,
(303) 860-1115 or ourcourts@cobar.org.