Steve Chavez
Phone: 303-578-4400
Fax: 303-578-4401
Email: sc@rmlawyers.com
PERSONAL BACKGROUND
My family has deep roots in Wyoming, Colorado and Northern New Mexico that dates to the mid-1700s. We are working class people with a shared sense of social justice and activism. My father was the pilar of our family. He was denied the opportunity to a higher education due to the color of his skin. He joined the military at the outbreak of WWII and was a member of the highly respected 8th Airforce and flew 25 combat missions over Nazi Germany at a time when a flyer’s life expectancy was 6 minutes. He returned home to Wyoming as a highly decorated combat veteran only to again suffer the sting of racial discrimination in education, housing and employment. He eventually moved the family to Colorado.
We lived in the housing projects of West Denver. I attended West High School. I have had the lived experience of poverty, police brutality and harassment by the Denver Police Department, housing discrimination, almost non-existent health care, and a substandard education in public schools.
These life experiences are very important since they shaped who I am and my lifelong dedication to the fair treatment of all people and speaking truth to power. I have worked with many community organizations over the years regarding a variety of social justice issues. My sole objective has been to help others and hopefully their children’s children.
PROFESSIONAL BACKGROUND
Chavez Consulting and Mediation Services
October 2015-present
Provides a broad range of mediation and consulting services in the public and private sectors.
Consults on a confidential basis with senior executives in the public, private sector and the non-profit community to assist them in solving very sensitive emotionally charged issues.
Consults on a regular basis with the CEO of a company that provides cultural competence training to law enforcement agencies in the western United States to provide strategies to law enforcement agencies that fosters positive police community relations and fewer allegations of police/sheriff abuse.
Participated in a working group organized by Denver Mayor Hancock to help reform the Denver Sheriff’s Department. The catalyst for the project were numerous reported instances of extreme abuse of people in the care and custody of the Denver Jail system.
Director, Colorado Civil Rights Division
May 2007-October 2015
Assisted in the enforcement of Colorado’s anti-discrimination laws in the areas of employment, housing, and public accommodations. Supervised the investigation of thousands of discrimination cases. Engaged in education and outreach activities throughout Colorado involving regulated industries, housing providers and various communities of interest. These efforts resulted in the increased positive public perception of fairness and transparency of the Civil Rights Division.
Successfully employed strategies to completely restructure the Civil Rights Division to maximize employee time and the use of state and federal dollars resulting in the completion of investigations much faster and with a higher rate of resolution.
In 2007, conducted an in-depth investigation and published a study of the entire residential lending industry in Colorado to uncover evidence of discriminatory predatory lending that led to the successful prosecution of several major lenders in Colorado.
Presented many continuing legal education classes and participated as a guest/keynote speaker at conferences that resulted in the better understanding of the civil rights regulatory process in Colorado and raised the stature of the agency.
Served on Lt. Governor Joe Garcia’s Indian Commission and Governor Hickenlooper’s Pay Equity Commission. Acted as the state representative and annual speaker at the MLK Humanitarian Awards celebration in Denver.
The National Federation of Independent Businesses (NFIB) asked me to serve on their leadership council to train NFIB members on how to avoid costly civil rights litigation and more effectively manage their workforces.
Received the 2014 Ally of the Year Award from the Colorado GLBT Bar Association for groundbreaking work that advanced the civil rights of the GLBT community locally, nationally, and internationally.
Received the 2017 Anti-Defamation League’s Annual Civil Rights Award.
Issued the first decision, Coy Mathis, in the United States that protected the rights of transgender children to use the restroom of their choice consistent with their gender identity in public schools. This case serves as a road map for other governmental agencies, nationwide, to implement laws to protect transgender individuals.
Issued the regulatory decision in the Masterpiece Bake Shop case that protects the rights of same sex couples to purchase goods in places of public accommodations regardless of their gender identity.
Filed a lawsuit against Kaiser Permanente, on behalf of a transgender teenager, due to the denial of medical treatment, that resulted in all major insurance carriers in Colorado entering settlement negotiations with my office, which I personally led.
Negotiations resulted in the voluntary removal of exclusions in most Colorado insurance policies that previously denied medical and gender affirming treatment to transgender individuals based on their sexual orientation. As a result, transgender Coloradoans can now receive adequate health care in Colorado regardless of their sexual orientation.
Successfully sued a consortium of nightclubs in lower downtown Denver that utilized racial profiling practices to deny admission of African American men to their nightclubs. The case was settled on terms favorable to persons of color.
Personally, supervised an enforcement action with the federal government against a major resort in the Vail Valley, Vail Run Resort that resulted in a multi-million dollar settlement for female immigrant hotel workers that had been sexually harassed and sexually assaulted by a hotel supervisor.
In 2013-2014, worked to protect the civil rights of immigrants in Northern Colorado, as the state civil rights disaster relief liaison for the Governor’s Office, after the devastating floods in Northern Colorado in 2013.
Director, Legal and Human Resources, State of Colorado, Department of Transportation
June 2002-April 2007
Supervised the human resources and HR legal related functions at a state agency of 3,000 employees including managing staff that provided legal, investigatory, training, and risk management functions. Instituted a major pay equity study that resulted in a more equitable pay structure for workers. Worked tirelessly to integrate the agency’s workforce with people of color, women, and people with disabilities. Participated on an executive management team that successfully implemented a complex $40,000,000 IT project that completely restructured how the agency managed all its information.
First Assistant Attorney General, Colorado Attorney General
June 1981-May 2002
Served as a First Assistant Attorney General and Assistant Attorney General at the Colorado Attorney General’s Office successfully litigating a wide variety of complex environmental, eminent domain, employment and construction contract cases before federal, state and administrative tribunals. As First Assistant Attorney General for Ken Salazar created and supervised an employment/personnel litigation defense team that provided legal advice and advocacy for all executive branch departments of state government. Provided hands on expert personnel/employment training to senior level cabinet members and their staff. Became a recognized expert in the managing and triaging extremely serious cases of workplace violence because of a female co-worker and civil rights investigator being shot to death at work by misogynous male. This experience had a profound impact on me. I became acutely aware of experiences of woman being abused in the workplace by men and used every legal means at my disposal to root out abusive behavior.
Acted as counsel for the Department of Corrections and Colorado State Patrol in a variety of high-profile cases that were successfully resolved, without litigation, involving serious wrongdoing by DOC and CSP first line and high-ranking employees.
Creatively settled a major hazardous waste enforcement action, as defense counsel for a state agency that resulted in a $50,000,000 environmental remediation program to clean up toxic waste from leaking underground storage tanks that polluted an entire urban cooridor.
Successfully defended a state agency and their Executive Director, in an action before the Commandant of the United States Coast Guard regarding allegations of the serious pollution of a navigable stream in Colorado and engaging in a cover-up.
Enforcement Attorney, United States Environmental Protection Agency
May 1979-May 1981
Prosecuted violations of federal environmental laws that included the Clean Air Act, Toxic Substances Control Act and Clean Water Act. Initiated enforcement actions against the Adolph Coors Brewing Company, University of Colorado Board of Regents and the Climax Molybdenum Mining Company.
Skills
Ability to navigate emotionally charged and complex legal, political and social problems in an independent, fair minded and non-partisan manner to reach favorable outcomes for diverse groups of people.
Education
University of Colorado School of Law, Juris Doctor
Colorado State University, Bachelor of Science
Community Service
ACLU, Board of Directors;
Tepeyac Health Clinic, Board of Directors;
Clifford Still Museum, Trustee;
Commissioner Denver Scientific Cultural Facilities District (SCFD),
Board;
NEWSED, Board of Directors;
Chair Denver Mayor Hancock, Latino Commission;
Lt. Joe Garcia’s Indian Commission;
Gov. Hickenlooper, Pay Equity Commission;
Advisory Board, Firefly Autistic Center;
Colorado Latino Forum, Board of Directors;
Colorado Latino Advocacy and Research Organization, Board of Directors;
Servicios de La Raza, Board of Directors;
Gov. Owens, Civil Service Reform Commission.
National Hispanic Bar Association, Chair Civil Rights Division.