Education

Duke University School of Law
J.D., 2009, High Honors, Order of the Coif (top 10% of class)

Duke University Graduate School
Masters of Philosophy, 2009

Amherst College
B.A., Law, Jurisprudence, & Social Thought, 2005, thesis awarded magna cum laude

Durango High School
Class of 2000

professional

Public Defender Service for D.C. (2009-2017), Trial Attorney and Supervising Attorney

Haddon, Morgan & Foreman, P.C. (2018-2020)

Memberships & Activities

• President-Elect, Colorado Criminal Defense Bar (2024 term)

• Secretary, Second Chance Center (2023-present)

• Civil Rights Section, CBA Legislative Liaison (2018-2020)

• National Police Accountability Project

• Colorado Trial Lawyers Association

• Faculty of Federal Advocates

• ACLU Cooperating Attorney

• COBALT Class of 2020

Admissions

• Colorado

• United States District Court, Colorado

• Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals

• District of Columbia

303-353-1535 | dave@maxtedlaw.com

Denver civil rights and criminal lawyer David Maxted is an accomplished trial and appellate attorney with over fifteen years of experience. Dave’s work focuses on high-stakes civil rights lawsuits and serious criminal cases, as well as strategic litigation and class actions challenging systemic injustice.

In over 35 trials and numerous appeals, he has won at every level, from state court trials, to federal court, to the Tenth Circuit, to the Colorado Supreme Court. Dave cut his teeth as a trial lawyer at the Public Defender Service for D.C., nationally recognized as one of the nation’s premier trial litigation training grounds, where he was also a supervising attorney. Originally from Durango, he handles cases throughout Colorado and is active in efforts to transform the criminal legal system.

Presentations, Lectures, and Training

Civil Litigation for Criminal Lawyers - Faculty of Federal Advocates (2024)

How to Challenge Racial Profiling in DUIs - Colorado Criminal Defense Bar (2023)

Reasonable Doubt Jury Instructions, CLE - Colorado Criminal Defense Bar (2023)

Civil Rights for Criminal Lawyers, CLE - Colorado Criminal Defense Bar (2022)

“Representing Incarcerated Plaintiffs During the COVID-19 Pandemic,” Colorado Bar Association CLE (2020)

“Civil Rights, Crimes, and CORA,” Colorado Trial Lawyers Association CLE, Denver, CO (2020)

“Opening Statements,” Colorado Bar Association Young Lawyer’s Division Spring CLE—Litigation Nuts & Bolts, Denver, CO (2018)

Training Faculty, Washington Council of Lawyers Intensive Litigation Skills Training, Washington, D.C. (2014-2016)

Training Lecturer, Criminal Practice Institute Summer Training Program, Washington, D.C. (2012-2016)

Supervising Attorney, Public Defender Service for the District of Columbia (2013-2017)

Publications

Westword Op-Ed: “Colorado's U.S. District Attorney Needs to Stop Prosecuting Small-Time Marijuana Growers” (2022), link to article available here.

Colorado Newsline Op-Ed: “The war on drugs failed. Don’t try it again.” (2022) link to article available here.

The Qualified Immunity Litigation Machine: Eviscerating the Anti-Racist Heart of § 1983, Weaponizing Interlocutory Appeal, and the Routine of Police Violence Against Black Lives, 98 Denv. L. Rev. 629 (2021), link to article available here.

Opinion: Polis Must Enact a COVID-19 Vaccination Plan for Colorado’s Hard Hit Prisons, The Colorado Sun (Feb. 12, 2021), link available here.

Professional Defense of the Accused, Lawyers’ Professional Liability in Colorado, (co-author), CBA-CLE, (2018, 2019), available here.

Hearsay Exceptions Involving State of Mind, Evidence in Colorado: A Practical Guide, (co-author), CBA-CLE, Second Edition (2019-present), available here.