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Maria Berkenkotter
2021 - Present
2034
4
Maria Berkenkotter is a judge of the Colorado Supreme Court. She assumed office on January 1, 2021. Her current term ends on January 10, 2034.
Berkenkotter ran for re-election for judge of the Colorado Supreme Court. She won in the retention election on November 5, 2024.
Berkenkotter first became a member of the Colorado Supreme Court by appointment. She was appointed on November 20, 2020, by Gov. Jared Polis (D) to replace Nathan Coats.[1] To learn more about this appointment, click here.
Biography
Berkenkotter earned her undergraduate degree from Western Michigan University in 1984 and her J.D. from the University of Denver Sturm College of Law in 1987.[2]
Berkenkotter began her career as a clerk for Colorado Supreme Court Justice Howard Kirshbaum. She then joined the law firm of Holmes & Starr, P.C. in Denver, where she practiced until 1990. That year, she joined the Colorado Attorney General's Office. She was an assistant attorney general with the Regulatory Law and Consumer Protection Sections from 1990 to 2000 and a first assistant attorney general with the Consumer Protection Section from 2000 to 2006. Gov. Bill Owens (R) appointed her to Colorado's 20th Judicial District Court in 2006.[3][2]
Berkenkotter worked as an arbiter with the Judicial Arbiter Group, Inc. and as a judicial coach for the Colorado Judicial Department from 2018 to 2020. Hickenlooper appointed her to the state supreme court, effective January 2021.[2]
Elections
2024
See also: Colorado Supreme Court elections, 2024
Colorado Supreme Court, Maria Berkenkotter's seat
Maria Berkenkotter was retained to the Colorado Supreme Court on November 5, 2024 with 66.8% of the vote.
Retention Vote |
% |
Votes |
|||
| ✔ | Yes |
66.8
|
1,685,363 | ||
No |
33.2
|
837,630 | |||
Total Votes |
2,522,993 | ||||
|
|
Endorsements
Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Berkenkotter in this election.
2014
- See also: Colorado judicial elections, 2014
Berkenkotter was retained to the 20th Judicial District with 78.9 percent of the vote on November 4, 2014.[4]
Judicial performance evaluation
The Colorado Commissions on Judicial Performance recommended that Judge Berkenkotter be Retained. The full report is available here.
2006
Berkenkotter was appointed to Colorado's 20th Judicial District Court by Gov. Bill Owens (R) in July 2006.[5] She retired on October 31, 2017.[6]
Appointments
2020
Colorado Governor Jared Polis (D) appointed Maria Berkenkotter to the Colorado Supreme Court on November 20, 2020. Berkenkotter was Polis' first nominee to the seven-member supreme court.[2] She succeeded Chief Justice Nathan Coats. Coats retired on January 22, 2021, when he reached the mandatory retirement age of 72.[7][8]
At the time of the vacancy, state supreme court justices were selected by the governor with help from a nominating commission, under Colorado law.
Campaign themes
2024
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Maria Berkenkotter did not complete Ballotpedia's 2024 Candidate Connection survey.
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
Noteworthy cases
Anderson v. Griswold (2023)
- See also: Presidential election in Colorado, 2024
On December 19, 2023, Berkenkotter dissented from a 4-3 Colorado Supreme Court ruling that excluded Donald Trump (R) from the state's presidential primary ballot. On March 4, 2024, the United States Supreme Court overruled the state supreme court's ruling.[9]
The Colorado Supreme Court reversed a Denver district court's ruling that Section 3 of the 14th Amendment, which "disqualifies people who have engaged in insurrection against the Constitution after having taken an oath to support it from holding office," did not apply to the presidency.[10] The majority opinion said, "A majority of the court holds that President Trump is disqualified from holding the office of President under Section Three of the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution. Because he is disqualified, it would be a wrongful act under the Election Code for the Colorado Secretary of State to list him as a candidate on the presidential primary ballot."[11]
The Colorado Supreme Court was the first court in the country to determine that the 14th Amendment's disqualification clause applied to Trump. The decision was stayed until January 4, 2024, to allow for appeals. Trump's campaign said they would appeal the decision to the U.S. Supreme Court.[10]
On January 5, 2024, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to review the Colorado Supreme Court’s decision barring Trump from the state’s primary ballot. Oral arguments in the case took place on February 8, 2024.[12]
State supreme court judicial selection in Colorado
- See also: Judicial selection in Colorado
The seven justices on the Colorado Supreme Court are selected through the assisted appointment method. Each justice is appointed by the governor from a list of names compiled by the Colorado Supreme Court Nominating Commission.[13][14]
Initial terms last at least two years, after which justices must stand for retention in a yes-no election. Subsequent terms last 10 years.[14]
Qualifications
To serve on this court, a justice must be:[15]
- a qualified elector in the state;
- licensed to practice law in the state for five years; and
- under the age of 72 (retirement by 72 is mandatory).
Chief justice
The chief justice of the supreme court is selected by peer vote. Beginning in January 2021, the chief justice began serving for a set term on a rotating basis. Previously, the chief justice served indefinitely as long as he or she had the support of his or her peers.[16]
Vacancies
If a midterm vacancy occurs on the court, the seat is filled as it normally would be if the vacancy occurred at the end of a justice's term. A judicial nominating commission recommends to the governor three qualified candidates for an appellate court vacancy (two or three for a trial court vacancy), and the governor selects a successor from that list. After occupying the seat for two years, the newly appointed justice stands for retention in the next general election. The justice then serves a full 10-year term if he or she is retained by voters.[14]
The map below highlights how vacancies are filled in state supreme courts across the country.
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Governor Jared Polis, "Governor Polis Appoints Colorado Supreme Court Justice," November 20, 2020
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Colorado.gov, "Governor Polis Appoints Colorado Supreme Court Justice," November 20, 2020
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedbio - ↑ Colorado Secretary of State, "2014 General Election Unofficial Candidate List," accessed September 4, 2014
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedtwenty - ↑ Daily Camera, "Boulder District Chief Judge Maria Berkenkotter to retire in October," August 3, 2017
- ↑ Colorado Judicial Branch, "Chief Justice Nathan B. Coats announces retirement, Justice Brian D. Boatright to serve as next Chief Justice as Colorado Supreme Court moves to rotational terms for Chief," August 19, 2020
- ↑ Colorado Judicial Branch, "Colorado Supreme Court Chief Justice Nathan B. Coatsto retire, Nominating Commission sets date to select nominees," September 28, 2020
- ↑ Supreme Court, "Trump v. Anderson," accessed March 4, 2024
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 The New York Times, "Trump Is Disqualified From the 2024 Ballot, Colorado Supreme Court Rules," December 19, 2023
- ↑ NBC News, "Colorado Supreme Court kicks Trump off the state's 2024 primary ballot for violating the U.S. Constitution," December 19, 2023
- ↑ The New York Times, "Justices to Decide Whether Trump Is Eligible for Colorado Ballot," January 5, 2024
- ↑ Colorado Judicial Branch, "Colorado Supreme Court," accessed March 28, 2023
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 Colorado Judicial Branch, "Judicial Nominating Commissions," accessed March 28, 2023
- ↑ Colorado Judicial Branch, "What it takes to become a Judge," accessed March 28, 2023
- ↑ The Denver Post, "Colorado Supreme Court to impose term lengths for chief justice as current one retires," August 19, 2020
Federal courts:
Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: District of Colorado • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: District of Colorado
State courts:
Colorado Supreme Court • Colorado Court of Appeals • Colorado District Courts • Colorado County Courts • Denver Probate Court • Denver Juvenile Court • Colorado Municipal Courts • Colorado Water Courts
State resources:
Courts in Colorado • Colorado judicial elections • Judicial selection in Colorado
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