The State of Colorado released a “Request for Information” (RFI), seeking outside counsel for the Colorado Independent Congressional Redistricting Commission. Eleven attorneys from the LawBank community collaborated to submit a collective response. The practitioners came together as solo or small law firm owners and were represented by three lead attorneys —Jeanine Anderson, Jennifer Gilbert, and David Seserman. Other LawBank attorneys represented in the response included Greg Bentley, Amy Brimah, Steven Brown, Michele DeVoe, Susan Klopman, Mark Saliman, Mark Spitz, and Claire Sweetman.
The collaboration was a unique response to the RFI, in that requests of this nature are often met with responses from a single Big Law firm. The team of LawBank attorneys was able to stand out by offering a variety of political perspectives, professional experiences, and diverse backgrounds. While many proposing attorneys come from large Colorado or national law firms or government offices, they have become small law firm owners. Collectively, the group of attorneys has represented thousands of individuals and businesses in Colorado. This commitment to the community demonstrates the group’s dedication to the citizens of the redistricting.
In the submitted response, the LawBank attorneys highlighted several other qualities apart from the other requests that the Independent Commissions Redistricting Staff would review. One key differentiator of the proposal was the group’s goal to provide knowledgeable, unbiased, and practical legal guidance to help the Commission achieve its goals. While many large firms and law groups have had a hand in lobbying or other types of rulemaking, this group had no vested interest in the outcome of the redistricting in Colorado.
With most law firms in Colorado and the U.S. being solo practitioners or small law firms, the law firm owners submitting the response were representative of small businesses across the state and country. One significant benefit of selecting the LawBank collaboration versus a Big Law firm is that the money earned would entirely support the local Colorado economy. Additionally, the State of Colorado has a deep commitment to supporting locally owned companies. Selecting a group of solo and small law firm owners would directly align with the State’s small business inclusivity goal.
Perhaps the most unique feature of the group’s proposal is that they could exercise partisan fairness with an array of political affiliations among the group. Just as Colorado is a diverse political landscape, the lawyers represented in the RFI reflect a variety of socioeconomic backgrounds, experiences, perspectives, and political beliefs. In addition, the group of attorneys offers a wide array of skills and expertise in practice diversity. The represented practitioners have worked in Administrative Law, Election Law, State and Government Law, Real Estate, Constitutional Law, Mediation, Litigation, and Appellate Law. Each attorney also has a deep understanding of Commission representation, the Open Records Act, FOIAS requests, the Colorado Constitution, and Colorado law. In summary, the represented group of eleven LawBank members bring uniquely diverse backgrounds, beliefs and experiences, and a deep commitment to the Colorado citizens affected by redistricting.
The unique, collegial community at LawBank enables attorneys from solo and small law firms to collaborate on cases and proposals. The eleven attorneys represented in response to the State of Colorado’s RFI are a great example of the incomparable, mutually beneficial relationships that independent law firms gain from being a LawBank member.
