Gardner, Bennet Introduce Bill to Increase Number of Federal Judges in Colorado

Press Release

Colorado's U.S. Senators Cory Gardner and Michael Bennet this week reintroduced legislation to address the Article III judge shortage in Colorado. Colorado has a heavy caseload for its six active judges. Moreover, those judges are all located in Denver, so litigants outside of Denver often travel long distances to attend court. This bipartisan legislation would add two new District Court judgeships for the district of Colorado, and the President of the United States would have the authority to nominate individuals to fill these positions.

"One of the U.S. Senate's greatest responsibilities is advising the president on our nation's courts," said Senator Gardner. "Colorado's population has continued to boom over the last several years without a proportional increase in the number of Article III judges. This causes significant logistical problems for the courts, contributes to federal judges in Colorado being overworked, and often forces litigants, jurors, witnesses, and counsel to have to travel across the state just to have a hearing. This bill would help ease the caseload in Colorado and work to ensure Coloradans are not denied their Constitutional right to fair and timely trials."

"The number of federal judges serving Colorado has stayed the same for decades, while our state's population has continued to grow," said Senator Bennet. "Given the mounting caseload facing our district court, two additional judgeships will ensure each case receives full examination."

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