2024 retention · County Court · Denver County
The state did not publish a 2024 survey report: too few responses. This evaluation is not ranked.
Commission: meets standards (5–0)
The Denver County Court Commission on Judicial Performance unanimously agrees by a vote of 5-0 that Honorable Judge Theresa Spahn MEETS PERFORMANCE STANDARDS. The Colorado statutory judicial performance criteria are integrity, legal knowledge, communication skills, judicial temperament, administrative performance, and service to the legal profession and the public.
Judge Spahn served as the presiding judge both before and during the COVID pandemic. She has exceptionally strong leadership skills and, through her leadership, improved the Court’s morale, functionality and reputation. She encourages comradery among the judges and staff, builds bridges, and leads through consensus. In the courtroom, she is known for her people skills and for managing her courtroom with compassion. She is very clear and carefully explains the legal basis for each oral ruling. She maintains an efficient docket while still giving parties adequate time to speak. She has a passion for learning. Outside of the courtroom, she works with a program aimed to increase the pipeline of diverse students in law schools and is passionate about mentoring law students.
In evaluating Judge Spahn, the commission used live, livestream and recorded courtroom observations, conducted a personal interview with the judicial officer, case management data and reviewed surveys from attorney and non-attorney courtroom participants, comments received from interested parties during the evaluation, and the judicial officer self-evaluation, with supporting documents when submitted, to inform its decision for meets/does not meet performance standards.
Judge Spahn was appointed to the Denver County Court in October of 2014 by Mayor Michael Hancock. She earned her undergraduate degree from Metropolitan State College (now known as Metropolitan State University of Denver) and her law degree from the University of Denver Sturm College of Law. Prior to her appointment, Judge Spahn served as a district court magistrate in the 17th Judicial District and a deputy district attorney in Adams and Mesa Counties. Judge Spahn was director of the O’Connor Judicial Selection Initiative, a national initiative spearheaded by former U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor to advance policy reform and was also the founding director of the Colorado Office of the Child’s Representative. She also worked in private practice and, at the time of her appointment, was a name partner with Wedgle & Spahn, P.C. Judge Spahn is the member of several professional organizations including the Colorado Women’s Bar Association and volunteers her time with many local philanthropic organizations.
2020 retention · County Court · Denver County
14 percentile · rank 32 of 37
composite 0100
16 percentile · rank 84 of 100
composite 0100
5 8th percentile among peers · 3rd percentile statewide
380
Composite index 24.77 among peers (22.17 statewide): the mean of the three percentiles below. Rank orders by it.
3.30 of 4 · 29.73 percentile
1.504.00
3.33 of 4 · 31.08 percentile
1.503.95
67.00% 13.51 percentile
0.00%100.00%
Attorneys
- Say “meets standards”
- 67.00%
Non-attorneys
- Say “meets standards”
- 100.00%
| Category | Score | Peer median | Peer range (dot is this judge, line is the median) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Case Management | 3.20median 3.50 | 3.50 | |
| Application and Knowledge of Law | 3.20median 3.30 | 3.30 | |
| Communications | 2.80median 3.60 | 3.60 | |
| Diligence | 3.20median 3.40 | 3.40 | |
| Demeanor | 3.60median 3.50 | 3.50 | |
| Fairness | 4.00median 3.90 | 3.90 |
Commission: meets standards (10–0)
The Second Judicial District Commission on Judicial Performance, on a vote of 10-0, unanimously finds that Presiding Judge Theresa Spahn MEETS PERFORMANCE STANDARDS.
The Commission reviewed the results of surveys submitted by attorneys and non-attorneys, including written verbatim comments, interviews of the Denver City Attorney, and the head of the Denver municipal public defender’s office. The Commission also interviewed Judge Spahn, reviewed her written self-evaluation and opinions she authored. Some members of the Commission also observed Judge Spahn in court.
Judge Spahn’s serves as Presiding Judge of the Denver County Court, so she spends less time in a courtroom than other county court judges. For that reason, she received less survey responses than other judges. In the survey results from attorneys, compared to other county judges standing for retention Judge Spahn scored slightly higher than average in demeanor and fairness. Judge Spahn scored slightly lower than average in application and knowledge of the law, case management, communications and diligence. Together, all of the other Denver County Court judges recently nominated Judge Spahn for the County Court Judge of the Year award from the Colorado Judicial Institute. The judges were “honored and excited to nominate … Presiding Judge Theresa Spahn” for the award. Their “decision was unanimous” since “Judge Spahn is such an amazing and inspirational leader.” Their nomination letter for the award listed many remarkable achievements—a list too long to include here. For all of these reasons, the Commission unanimously finds that Judge Spahn meets performance standards.
The Mayor appointed Judge Spahn to the Denver County Court in October 2014. Mayor Hancock named her as Presiding Judge in 2017. Before her appointment, Judge Spahn was in private practice with Wedgle & Spahn, P.C. She also previously served as the Director of the O’Connor Judicial Selection Initiative at the Institute for the Advancement of the American Legal System, the founding Executive Director of the Colorado Office of the Child’s Representative, an Adams County Court magistrate, and a deputy district attorney in Adams County. Judge Spahn regularly volunteers in the community through the Denver County Court’s Judicial Oversight Group which brings judges of the Denver County Court together with students volunteering in the community.
2016 retention · County Court · Denver County
56 percentile · rank 16 of 36
composite 0100
64 percentile · rank 39 of 108
composite 0100
69 43rd percentile among peers · 43rd percentile statewide
5140
Composite index 59.72 among peers (64.66 statewide): the mean of the three percentiles below. Rank orders by it.
3.43 of 4 · 26.39 percentile
3.113.84
3.59 of 4 · 59.72 percentile
3.023.84
100.00% 93.06 percentile
50.00%100.00%
Attorneys
- Overall grade
- 3.89
- Say “meets standards”
- 100.00%
Non-attorneys
- Overall grade
- 3.31
- Say “meets standards”
- 80.00%
| Category | Score | Peer median | Peer range (dot is this judge, line is the median) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Case Management | 3.91median 3.50 | 3.50 | |
| Application and Knowledge of Law | 3.56median 3.49 | 3.49 | |
| Communications | 3.65median 3.65 | 3.65 | |
| Diligence | 3.66median 3.50 | 3.50 | |
| Demeanor | 3.59median 3.62 | 3.62 | |
| Fairness | 3.17median 3.66 | 3.66 |
Commission: meets standards (9–0)
The Second Judicial District Commission on Judicial Performance, on a vote of 9-0, unanimously recommends that Judge Theresa A. Spahn BE RETAINED. One member of the Commission recused themselves from voting on Judge Spahn’s retention recommendation.
Judge Spahn became a Denver County Court judge in October 2014. Previously, Judge Spahn was in private practice with Wedgle & Spahn, P.C., served as the Director of the O’Connor Judicial Selection Initiative at the Institute for the Advancement of the American Legal System, was the founding Executive Director of the Colorado Office of the Child’s Representative, was an Adams County Court magistrate, and a deputy district attorney in Adams County.
During her first year on the bench, Judge Spahn presided over the county court’s designated civil protection order courtroom. She now handles criminal matters in a general sessions court. The Commission reviewed the results of surveys of attorneys and non-attorneys, a self-evaluation from the judge, interviewed the judge, reviewed written opinions, and selected members of the Commission observed Judge Spahn in court. Although the response rate was small, 100% of the attorneys completing the survey recommended retention. Of non-attorneys completing the survey, 80% recommended retention, 2% made no recommendation, and 19% recommended she not be retained. (These percentages do not total 100% due to rounding.)
Attorneys rated Judge Spahn above the average for county court judges standing for retention in all categories of judicial performance criteria, including a 100% score for being unbiased in her decision-making and management of the courtroom. Her ratings were particularly strong on the subjects of case management, application and knowledge of the law, and demeanor. Among non-attorneys responding to the survey, Judge Spahn was rated slightly below average in all categories of judicial performance, although the comments submitted by survey respondents were mostly laudatory. Judge Spahn was repeatedly complimented by non-attorney survey respondents for her knowledge of the law, fairness, efficiency, and positive demeanor. After conducting an interview with Judge Spahn and observing her in the courtroom, the Commission is satisfied that Judge Spahn is off to an excellent start as a judge and will only continue to improve during the next performance period.