Colorado lawyers say court e-file system now makes them certify they won't assist ICE

Attorneys in Colorado are claiming that the state's court e-file system is requiring them to certify they won't share personal information to assist ICE or federal immigration enforcement.

Multiple attorneys on X reported an electronic notification citing the Protect Civil Rights Immigration Status Act, a state law passed in 2025 that prohibits collection or disclosure of information pertaining to immigration status in health care, education and government.

Covenant Law founder Ian Speir posted screenshots of an alleged electronic form that he was required to accept to access Colorado's court filing system.

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The page in question is not public-facing and appeared to be only accessible by attorneys registered in Colorado, Fox News Digital's review of the website revealed.

"I certify under penalty of perjury that I will not use or disclose personal identifying information, as defined by [the act] obtained from this database for the purpose of investigating for, participating in, cooperating with, or assisting in federal immigration enforcement, including enforcement of civil immigration laws and 8 U.S.C. Sec. 1325 or 1326, unless required by federal or state law or to comply with a court-issued subpoena, warrant, or order," the message says, asking attorneys to "accept" or "decline."

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"Colorado is now requiring lawyers in the state, as a condition of logging into its court e-filing system, to promise not to cooperate with federal authorities in enforcing federal immigration law," Speir said in response on X.

Speir added he doesn't practice immigration nor criminal law, and nothing in his cases would be relevant to the law. But he "cannot log into the state's official e-filing system without saluting 'The Resistance'."

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"I now cannot represent my clients, file lawsuits, access cases, file documents in existing cases," he said, adding he chose the "accept" option "under protest."

"The bottom line here is that Colorado seems to be unlawfully coopting private attorneys across the state to further its anti-federal sanctuary policies," Speir told Fox News Digital later Friday.

Attorney and former law professor Matt Barber added on X that the oath the state expects lawyers to take is "indefensible."

The announcement Barber received said the the Colorado Judicial Department deployed an "updated certification process" as of March 30 to comply with the new law.

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The original implementation was paused in September amid "additional review," the agency said in its notice.

"The majority of CCE information remains public; this requirement only impacts access to nonpublic personal identifying information as defined by statute," the agency said in its new terms, adding that attorneys who choose to decline the agreement must complete a "brief certification" to proceed.

"Democrats going back to their Confederacy roots," another critic quipped, citing a screenshot of the 1956 law outlining "seditious conspiracy" as opposing federal authority by force or "hinder[ing] … execution of any law of the United States."

Fox News contributor Guy Benson added, "Big lawsuits: Now."

Fox News Digital reached out to the Colorado Judicial Department, Gov. Jared Polis and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security for comment.

The 2025 law, authored by Sen. Julie Gonzales, D-Denver, and Sen. Mike Weissman, D-Aurora, also prevents civil arrests of people present at courthouses and "military force[s]" from other states from entering Colorado without executive permission unless acting upon federal orders.

And it repeals requirements that applicants for college admission or driver's licenses must sign an form pledging they've applied for lawful presence in the U.S.