Were you discriminated against at work in Denver?
Being treated worse because of who you are, in pay, promotion, discipline, scheduling or termination, may be unlawful. Retaliation after you objected or reported it may be unlawful too.
If your workplace rights were violated, you may be able to pursue compensation for lost pay or emotional harm, and hold your employer accountable.
Not sure whether it was "serious enough"? You can request a review even if you never reported it to HR or are still employed.
What discrimination actually looks like, and what the law calls it.
Discrimination is rarely a single dramatic act. It's the pattern, the 'jokes,' the passed-over promotion, the accommodation that never comes, the sudden performance problem after you spoke up. The legal test is whether a protected trait drove how you were treated.
The 'nicknames' are slurs. Everyone laughs, so I'm supposed to laugh too.
The law calls it → racial or national-origin harassment
- Since I started wearing a hijab, I'm suddenly 'not a culture fit' for client meetings. The law calls it → religious discrimination
- They call me 'grandpa' in standups and gave the project I built to someone half my age. The law calls it → age-based harassment and discrimination (40+)
- I asked for a simple schedule change for my disability. Months later, still nothing, and now I'm 'unreliable.' The law calls it → failure to accommodate a disability
- I reported the slurs to HR. Two weeks later my performance was suddenly a problem. The law calls it → retaliation, illegal even if the original complaint isn't proven, as long as it was made in good faith
- After I told my downtown employer I was pregnant, my project load was quietly reassigned and my promotion vanished. The law calls it → pregnancy discrimination under CADA
These cover race and national origin, disability (and accommodations), age (40 and over), religion (and accommodations), sex and pregnancy, sexual orientation and gender identity, in any industry. If something here is familiar, you don't have to be sure before you ask.
Illustrative situations, not client accounts.
The Colorado Anti-Discrimination Act protects Denver workers from discrimination because of race, national origin, disability, age (40+), religion, sex, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity, and marital status, at employers of all sizes, not just the federal 15-employee minimum. Unfairness alone is not enough: the treatment must be connected to a protected trait, an accommodation right, or a protected complaint. The CCRD filing window is 300 days, and both the state and federal agencies sit in downtown Denver.
What could taking action help you pursue?
Depending on the facts, legal action may help recover financial losses, address emotional harm, restore employment opportunities, or require workplace changes. Available remedies depend on the facts and applicable law; no outcome is guaranteed.
Recover what you lost
Lost pay, benefits, hours, and employment opportunities tied to the unlawful conduct.
Address the harm
Compensation for emotional distress may be available where the law provides for it.
Restore an opportunity
Some cases may involve reinstatement, promotion, corrected records, or another job-related remedy.
Create accountability
A resolution may include policy changes, training, or other corrective workplace action.
You do not need a perfect record, or even to know whether what happened was illegal, before asking what your options are.
Common concerns we hear from employees
I never reported it to HR.
You may still have legal options. Not reporting immediately does not automatically end your rights, although the specific facts can affect a claim.
I don't have screenshots or witnesses.
You do not need a complete evidence file before contacting us. We can help identify texts, emails, schedules, witnesses, and other evidence that may matter.
I still work there.
You can ask questions while still employed. Retaliating against a worker for opposing unlawful conduct or asserting protected rights may itself be unlawful.
It was a customer or client, not a coworker.
In some circumstances, an employer may be responsible for the conduct of supervisors, coworkers, customers, clients, or other third parties.
Brian Denlinger
Shareholder · Admitted in Colorado
Brian Denlinger is licensed in Colorado and Washington. He represents employees in discrimination, harassment, retaliation, and wage-and-hour matters.
Read Brian's full bio →Real verdicts and recoveries in harassment and discrimination cases.
$15 million
1 plaintiff · Gender pay & promotion discrimination, jury verdict (punitive damages under federal + Oregon law)
Jury verdict, subject to post-trial proceedings. Not a settlement or a collected recovery.
$1.3 million
19 Black construction workers · Racial harassment (hostile work environment)
$1 million
27 Black construction workers · Racial harassment (hostile work environment)
$725,000
14 individuals · Racial harassment (14 individual arbitrations)
Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.
What happens after you reach out?
You don't need documents, a lawyer-ready story, or even certainty that what happened was illegal.
- 01
Talk with us
A short initial conversation about what happened and when.
- 02
We assess the record
We identify possible claims, deadlines and evidence that may matter.
- 03
If we take the case
We handle the filing strategy, negotiations and litigation.
Deadlines can depend on where and how you file
Colorado and federal claims may follow different filing routes. These are general time limits, not sequential steps.
Generally, to file a discrimination or harassment charge with the Colorado Civil Rights Division.
CCRD, Complaint Process ↗Often, to file an EEOC charge when the claim is also covered by state or local anti-discrimination law.
EEOC, How to File a Charge ↗Generally, to file a lawsuit after receiving a CCRD right-to-sue notice.
CCRD, Complaint Process ↗Other claims and exceptions may have different or shorter deadlines. Contact counsel promptly so the applicable dates can be reviewed.
Colorado Anti-Discrimination Act (CADA)
C.R.S. § 24-34-401 et seq.
Primary source, C.R.S. § 24-34-401 et seq. ↗Share what happened in about two minutes. The firm will review your submission and contact you about possible options and next steps. There is no cost or obligation to request a review.
Deadlines and filing issues for workers in Denver.
- The CCRD window is 300 days, extended from six months in 2022; older guidance still circulating online is wrong.
- The 90-day window to sue after a right-to-sue notice is short and unforgiving.
- Denver's federal employees follow the 45-day EEO-counselor track, not CADA's deadlines.
- Equal-pay and pay-transparency complaints run through the CDLE on their own track, separate from a CCRD discrimination charge.
- Each discrete act generally has its own clock; waiting for a pattern to 'finish' can silently forfeit the earliest and often strongest acts.
Local filing and enforcement information for Denver workers.
The sources below are public agency actions and filing information, not this firm's cases. They illustrate how claims have been handled and do not predict the outcome of another matter.
- Higher education, Denver EEOC v. University of Denver (D. Colo.): $2.66 million consent decree (2018) resolving federal equal-pay claims that female full professors at the Sturm College of Law were paid on average nearly $20,000 less than male counterparts, with required salary increases, annual pay publication, and an annual compensation-equity study. official source ↗
These are public government enforcement actions by the EEOC, not this firm's cases. Agency and state filing routes for Denver follow below.
Where do you file a workplace discrimination claim in Denver?
Colorado Civil Rights Division
Denver (statewide)1560 Broadway, Suite 825
Denver, CO 80202
(303) 894-2997
The CCRD is part of the Department of Regulatory Agencies in Denver. An intake packet can be started online; the division serves the whole state from Denver.
File online →EEOC Denver Field Office
The Denver Field Office covers Colorado, and it shares work with the Colorado Civil Rights Division, whose Denver office is a few blocks away. Most workers start online.
950 17th Street, Suite 300Denver, CO 80202
1-800-669-4000 EEOC Public Portal →
Denver District Court (2nd Judicial District)
City & County Building (civil matters)1437 Bannock Street
Denver, CO 80202
The filing path, step by step
- 1Write down what happened and when: the decision (firing, demotion, pay, promotion, scheduling, discipline), who made it, and what was said.
- 2File with the Colorado Civil Rights Division within 300 days (1560 Broadway, Suite 825; online intake), or with the EEOC Denver Field Office at 950 17th Street. A cross-filed charge preserves both routes.
- 3CADA generally requires completing the CCRD process before a state-law suit; after a right-to-sue notice, you generally have 90 days to file in Denver District Court.
- 4Pay discrimination has an additional route: Colorado's Equal Pay for Equal Work Act complaints run through the state labor department (CDLE), including job-posting transparency violations.
- 5A Colorado-admitted attorney can map which routes and deadlines fit your facts; the initial review has no cost or obligation.
Employment discrimination information in other Colorado cities
- BoulderEmployment-discrimination information
- Colorado SpringsEmployment-discrimination information
- Fort CollinsEmployment-discrimination information
Asked by Denver workers.
What does Colorado protect that federal law doesn't?
Three big things: CADA covers employers of all sizes (Title VII requires 15+), Colorado expressly protects sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, and marital status in the statute, and Colorado's Equal Pay for Equal Work Act adds pay-transparency rights federal law does not have.
Is unfair treatment enough for a discrimination case?
No, and this is the honest answer most pages skip. The law prohibits treatment connected to a protected trait, an accommodation right, or a protected complaint. A bad boss who treats everyone poorly is usually not breaking discrimination law; a boss whose treatment tracks race, sex, age, disability, or your complaint may be.
I asked for a disability accommodation and got nowhere. What now?
Colorado employers must engage with reasonable accommodation requests, and CADA reaches small employers the federal ADA does not. Put the request in writing, keep the responses, and get the timeline reviewed, refusing to engage at all is often itself the violation.
I found out a man in my role earns more. Is that a case?
Colorado's Equal Pay for Equal Work Act prohibits sex-based pay differences for substantially similar work and requires pay ranges in job postings. Complaints run through the CDLE, and a pay-discrimination claim can also proceed under CADA. Pay secrecy policies that block workers from comparing wages are themselves restricted.
Where would a Denver discrimination lawsuit actually be filed?
State-law claims are filed in Denver District Court at the City & County Building, 1437 Bannock Street, after the CCRD process concludes. Federal claims go to the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado, also downtown.
How long do I have to act in Denver?
Generally 300 days to file with the CCRD or EEOC, then 90 days to sue after a right-to-sue notice. Equal-pay complaints through the CDLE have their own timing. An attorney can tell you which clock controls your facts.