Coming soon: The First, a new documentary film about the First Amendment
The Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition is fiscal sponsor for a new film about the First Amendment to be aired on PBS stations starting in October.
First Amendment
CCJRA frustration: ‘This request is being closed due to the age of the request.’
For Zansberg, the story of his unilaterally terminated records request highlights a systemic problem with CCJRA that many requesters face: Unlike CORA, which requires the production of records “not readily available” within three working days unless extenuating circumstances apply, CCJRA does not include a response deadline.
CFOIC appeals ‘private’ judge’s refusal to lift suppression order in divorce case
That ruling should be reversed because Meyer failed to apply the presumption of public access outlined in case law, the Colorado Rules of Civil Procedure and Chief Justice Directive 05-01, the judicial branch’s court records policy, argues CFOIC’s appellate brief.
Wrap-up: Lawmakers in 2026 session rejected CORA response-time extension and PUC open meetings exemption, improved courts transparency
Efforts to weaken the Colorado Open Records Act and give an open meetings law exemption to the state Public Utilities Commission fell short during the 2026 session of the General Assembly.
Judge grants temporary restraining order against police seizure of Durango bookstore’s customer records
Citing a landmark Colorado Supreme Court ruling involving the Tattered Cover bookstore, a judge granted a temporary restraining order against a police detective who is seeking customer records from Maria’s Bookshop in Durango.
‘Private’ judge largely denies CFOIC motion to lift suppression order in divorce case
A judge in a “private” judicial system has largely denied a motion from the Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition to lift a suppression order that has made an entire divorce case file and the order itself off-limits to the public.
CFOIC’s 2025 year in review: press freedom battles, a vetoed records bill, a ‘private’ judicial system, auto-deleted Signal texts and a $25.4 million CORA request
Coloradans fought for press freedom and freedom of information in 2025 in settings as small as the Eastern Plains town of Bennett and as big as the U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C.
Bennett trustees approve First Amendment settlement with newspaper that lost town’s advertising over article about sex assault
Bennett trustees voted to settle a First Amendment claim brought by a weekly newspaper that lost town advertising last spring because the board didn’t like an article about a sexual assault that allegedly happened in the locker room of a middle school.
Colorado Supreme Court interprets ‘public interest’ parameters of state’s anti-SLAPP law
The Colorado Supreme Court established a two-step test for determining whether challenged speech or conduct is covered by a 2019 statute designed to protect Coloradans from meritless lawsuits that target free expression.
Private judge sets hearing on CFOIC motion to set aside suppression order in divorce case
A private judge has granted a request from the Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition to intervene in a divorce case in which a suppression order makes the entire court file — and the order itself — unavailable to the public.