Wrongful Termination Investigations in Colorado

01The starting rule

At-Will Employment and Its Colorado Exceptions

Most Colorado employees work without a fixed term, and the general rule is that either side may end the relationship at any time. The exceptions are what make a case. Colorado courts recognize a public policy claim, implied contract theories built on handbooks or specific promises, and statutory protections for discrimination, retaliation and certain off-duty activity. Each exception calls for different evidence, so the first conversation with counsel is about which theory is in play. Our Colorado investigators then gather the facts that theory depends on.

The public policy claim traces to Martin Marietta Corp. v. Lorenz, decided by the Colorado Supreme Court in 1992. As commonly summarized, it protects an employee fired for refusing an employer's directive to break the law or for performing a public duty, where the directive offends a clearly expressed public policy and the employer knew the refusal rested on a reasonable belief. In June 2026, in Moreno v. Circle K Stores, the court recognized a narrow application for lawful self-defense against an unprovoked workplace attack. Counsel should confirm current authority, and an early investigative consulting session helps match evidence to elements.

• Public policy discharge under Martin Marietta v. Lorenz
• Implied contract from handbooks or assurances
• Discrimination and retaliation under CADA
• Lawful off-duty activity under C.R.S. § 24-34-402.5

02Discrimination law

CADA, the Civil Rights Division and the 300-Day Window

The Colorado Anti-Discrimination Act, C.R.S. § 24-34-401 and following, reaches far more employers than federal Title VII. The Colorado Civil Rights Division says any employee working in Colorado is covered, with limited exceptions for religious organizations. Protected classes include disability, race (including hair texture and protective hairstyles), creed, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, religion, age 40 and over, national origin, ancestry, marital status and pregnancy. Harassment-based firings are covered in depth on our workplace sexual harassment investigations page.

Time matters. Since HB22-1367 took effect on August 10, 2022, a charge with the Division generally must be filed within 300 days, up from 180, under C.R.S. § 24-34-403. A federal EEOC charge runs on its own clock. Those deadlines belong to counsel, but they set the investigator's calendar, because coworkers who saw the decision often change jobs within months, and some move across the metro to Aurora or leave Colorado entirely. We start by locating and interviewing those people, and former employees who have moved on are usually reachable through records-based contact research.

03Retaliation and the POWR Act

Retaliation After a Complaint, and What the POWR Act Changed

Many Colorado termination claims turn on sequence: an employee complains about discrimination, reports a safety problem or cooperates with an investigation, and soon afterward is written up or let go. The task in a wrongful termination investigation is to fix those dates precisely and show who knew about the protected activity when the decision was made. We build that sequence from email metadata, schedules, access logs counsel obtains and dated witness accounts, and a compliance audit of the reported practice can test whether the employee's concern was accurate.

The Protecting Opportunities and Workers' Rights Act, effective August 7, 2023, reshaped the record in these cases. Harassment no longer has to be severe or pervasive to be unlawful under Colorado law, an employer's harassment defense now depends on a reasonably designed prevention program and prompt investigation of complaints, and employers must keep personnel and employment records for five years. Those retention rules mean documents counsel requests should exist. When they do not, the gap itself is worth documenting, and our Denver investigators can begin witness work while counsel sends preservation letters.

04Off the clock

Firings Over Lawful Off-Duty Activity

Colorado has a statute many states lack. C.R.S. § 24-34-402.5 makes it a discriminatory or unfair employment practice to fire an employee for lawful activity off the employer's premises during nonworking hours, unless the restriction relates to a bona fide occupational requirement, is rationally tied to that employee's particular responsibilities, or is needed to avoid a conflict of interest. The remedy is a civil action in district court, and a prevailing employee generally recovers costs and attorney fees, except against very small employers.

These cases are factual. Was the activity actually lawful? Did it happen off premises and off the clock? How did the employer learn of it, and does the stated reason match the timing? We document the off-duty activity through public sources and lawful observation where counsel needs it, using the same methods described on our employee surveillance page. Social media posts that triggered a firing are captured with dates and context, and our guide to lawful investigator conduct in Colorado explains the limits we observe.

05Colorado workplaces

Bases, Campuses, Resorts and Oil Fields

Where someone worked shapes what evidence exists. The Front Range has large federal and defense workforces around Fort Carson, Peterson, the Air Force Academy and Buckley, where federal employees generally use a separate administrative process and contractors follow their own policies. University disputes at CU Boulder, Colorado State and Colorado School of Mines can involve faculty handbooks, grievance procedures and records subject to the Colorado Open Records Act, which any person may use. Our Colorado Springs investigators understand how installation-adjacent employers handle interviews.

Mountain and energy employers present different problems. Ski-county resorts in Eagle and Summit counties rely on seasonal crews who scatter when the lifts close, so witnesses may be in another state by summer. Oil and gas operations in Weld County, a frequent subject of our Colorado workplace surveillance work, use contractors, rotating shifts and field supervisors whose decisions are rarely written down, which makes witness interviews carry more weight. For those matters our Greeley investigators keep travel short, and Western Slope cases are handled through our Grand Junction coverage.

06The evidence

Comparators, Handbook Versions and the Decision Trail

Comparator evidence often decides these cases: how did the employer treat others who did the same thing? We identify similarly situated employees through interviews and records counsel obtains, then document their roles, supervisors, discipline and outcomes. Contract theories need every handbook version that applied, the signed acknowledgments and any offer letters or written assurances. When a document custodian has left, witness background research helps counsel decide whom to subpoena, and Colorado subpoenas can be served through Delator's Colorado process serving division.

The decision trail is the other half. Who recommended the termination, who approved it, what each person knew and when it was written down all matter. Shifting explanations, reasons that appear only after a charge is filed, and discipline that departs from the employer's own policy are familiar signs of pretext. We report what the evidence shows, including facts that cut against our client, so counsel is not surprised at deposition. Research on decision-makers stays within lawful, permissible-purpose sources and complies with federal and Colorado privacy law.

07Employers, timing and cost

Employer Investigations, Deadlines and What This Costs

Employers and their counsel use the same methods to make sure a termination rests on documented facts, or to test the record after a charge arrives. A pre-termination review might confirm suspected time theft or inventory diversion through an employee theft investigation, interview witnesses neutrally and produce a summary that holds up if challenged. Done honestly, it sometimes shows the decision should not be made, and a general risk management review can address the gaps it exposes. After a Division or EEOC charge, employer counsel needs a candid look at comparators and witnesses before drafting a position statement.

This work is billed as civil litigation support at $100 per hour with a $1,000 minimum. Remote items carry their own published prices, such as $102 for a basic background check and $300 for a due diligence report. Scope and total are confirmed in writing before work begins, with no retainer quietly drawn down. Colorado no longer licenses private investigators at the state level, so vetting falls to you; Delator is a licensed Tennessee firm and works to Tennessee's standard. Every rate appears on our Colorado service pricing page.

Services

Wrongful termination investigation services in Colorado

• Coworker witness interviewsCurrent and former coworkers interviewed with counsel's approval, with dated memos recording what each person saw, heard or was told about the firing.Learn more
• Former employee locationEx-employees who left for another job, another county or another state located through lawful records research before a filing deadline passes.Learn more
• Protected activity timelineComplaints, reports, investigations and discipline placed in exact order to show who knew about protected activity when the termination decision was made.Learn more
• Comparator analysisSimilarly situated employees identified, with their duties, supervisors, discipline and final outcomes documented so counsel can weigh disparate treatment arguments carefully.Learn more
• Policy and handbook collectionEach applicable handbook version, acknowledgment form, offer letter and written assurance gathered and dated for implied contract and disclaimer analysis.Learn more
• Off-duty conduct verificationLawful documentation of what an employee actually did outside work hours, for cases brought or defended under the off-duty activity statute.Learn more
• Pre-termination fact findingNeutral, employer-side inquiries into alleged misconduct that produce a written summary able to support, or caution against, a proposed termination.Learn more
• Credential verificationDegrees, professional credentials, licenses and prior employment checked when an employee's or an executive's stated qualifications become part of the dispute.Learn more
• Litigation support reportsWritten reports with exhibits for mediation, agency proceedings or court, with investigators available to explain how each finding was made.Learn more

How it works

How a Colorado wrongful termination investigation runs

1. 01

   Intake with counsel

   Counsel shares the termination date, the employer, the legal theory and every agency or court deadline. We return a written scope and price before contacting anyone.

2. 02

   Witness and record map

   We list the coworkers, supervisors, documents and systems likely to hold evidence, then rank them by how quickly each could be lost, forgotten or overwritten.

3. 03

   Interviews and records

   Investigators locate and interview approved witnesses, gather each policy version and build the timeline, reporting to counsel in writing as each new fact is confirmed and sourced.

4. 04

   Report and testimony

   The written report counsel receives pairs a dated timeline with a comparator summary and individual witness memos. Our investigators remain available for agency proceedings, depositions, hearings or trial testimony.

Compare

Selected Colorado termination theories and timing (summarized; counsel should confirm current law)

Statewide coverage

Wrongful termination support across Colorado

Denver metro employment matters are supported by investigators assigned to Denver and the surrounding counties, with Boulder County and campus cases handled through our Boulder investigators. Northern Colorado disputes involving Colorado State or Larimer County employers run through Fort Collins, and southern Front Range matters through Colorado Springs and Pueblo. Western Slope and mountain cases are scheduled with I-70 conditions in mind. However many counties the witnesses are spread across, counsel deals with a single contact and a single written scope.

• Denver
• Colorado Springs
• Boulder
• Fort Collins
• Greeley
• Grand Junction
• All of Colorado

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Every service

Investigations available in Colorado

Every service below is available in Colorado and across Colorado, run by the same Delator Group leadership that manages our Tennessee casework. Choose a service to read how it works in Colorado.

Service areas

Private investigators across Colorado