Wrongful termination in Colorado: what employers can and cannot do

“This instruction and Instruction 31:13 are predicated on Martin Marietta Corp. v. Lorenz, 823 P.2d 100 (Colo. 1992), where the court identified the elements of a claim for wrongful discharge under the public-policy exception to the employment at will doctrine.”

Before you fire someone: the step-by-step checklist

What it means for Colorado employers

Colorado's pattern civil jury instructions (Chapter 31, Wrongful Discharge) are a convenient map of how courts here organize the public policy tort. They separate two situations: a firing after an employee refused an employer's directive that would have required illegal conduct, a breach of a civic duty or the surrender of a work-related right (Instruction 31:12), and a firing for exercising a right or performing a public duty where no directive was given at all (Instruction 31:13). Under Rocky Mountain Hospital and Medical Service v. Mariani (1996), the trial judge first decides whether the public policy involved is specific and serious enough to support the tort. (Colorado Pattern Civil Jury Instructions, Chapter 31 (Wrongful Discharge))

The notes to those instructions list the kinds of conduct Colorado appellate courts have placed within the exception: filing a workers' compensation claim (Lathrop v. Entenmann's), asserting a right under the Colorado Wage Claim Act to be paid for travel time between stores (Hoyt v. Target Stores), reporting a co-worker's insurance fraud where a statute declares a policy against it, reporting a suspected violation of a Limited Gaming Act regulation (Webster v. Konczak), and reporting possible fraud on the government to the employer (Kearl v. Portage Environmental). For an employer, that list works as a warning sheet: a pay complaint, an injury claim or an internal fraud report followed by a dismissal is the pattern these decisions address. (Colorado Pattern Civil Jury Instructions, Chapter 31 (Wrongful Discharge))

Handbooks are where Colorado employers have the most control. Keenan treats written termination procedures as a possible offer; the pattern instruction notes cite decisions holding that clear and conspicuous disclaimers prevented an implied contract (Watson), and an express contract stating that employment was at will supported summary judgment for the employer (Holland v. Board of County Commissioners). The same notes warn that other provisions or documents inconsistent with the disclaimer, such as a separate policy requiring just cause and specific dismissal procedures (Allabashi v. Lincoln National Sales), can leave the question open. Keeping every document consistent with the disclaimer is the practical lesson. (Colorado Pattern Civil Jury Instructions, Chapter 31 (Wrongful Discharge))

A second contract route exists. Termination procedures in a manual can be enforced under promissory estoppel when the employer should have expected employees to treat them as a commitment and an employee relied on them (Keenan). That claim is equitable and decided by the court rather than a jury, and the employer's statement has to be specific and definite to support it (Watson, as cited in the instruction notes). (Colorado Pattern Civil Jury Instructions, Chapter 31 (Wrongful Discharge); Order, No. 1:19-cv-00694-WJM (D. Colo. 2020), Keenan)

Exceptions and special cases

• Good faith is contract-only. Decker holds that breaching a good faith covenant in an employment contract does not create a tort, and the instruction notes add (Valdez v. Cantor, 1999) that a contractual good faith promise must be specific enough to enforce, and (Hoyt v. Target Stores) vague assurances of fair treatment are unenforceable. (Colorado Pattern Civil Jury Instructions, Chapter 31 (Wrongful Discharge))
• Federal overlay, briefly: the EEOC says a business is covered by the laws it enforces if it has 15 or more employees for at least twenty calendar weeks (in this year or last) when the complaint involves race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability or genetic information, and 20 or more when the complaint involves age discrimination; the EEOC also says an employer may not take into account race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age (40 or older), disability or genetic information when making decisions about discipline or discharge. For the FLSA anti-retaliation clause, section 15(a)(3), the Labor Department's Fact Sheet 77A says employees are protected whether the complaint is made orally or in writing, and that most courts have ruled that internal complaints to an employer are also protected. (EEOC, Coverage of Business/Private Employers; EEOC, Prohibited Employment Policies/Practices; U.S. Department of Labor, Fact Sheet 77A)
• At separation, Colorado adds its own paperwork. Rule 7.3.2.2 of 7 CCR 1101-2 requires a notice of the availability of unemployment insurance for every worker who separates, with contact details for filing and checking a claim; CDLE's form for it says it is given in hard copy or electronic format and also asks for dates, earnings and the reason for separation. Earned vacation is wages and is paid at separation without forfeiture (C.R.S. 8-4-101(14)(a)(III), quoted in 7 CCR 1103-7, Rule 2.17). (7 CCR 1101-2, Rule 7.3.2.2; 7 CCR 1103-7, Wage Protection Rules, Rule 2.17; CDLE, Notice of Potential Availability of Unemployment Insurance Benefits)
• Colorado's deadline for final wages after a discharge and its service letter rule are still pending verification on the Desk, so they are not stated on this page.
• Not covered on this page yet: the Colorado Anti-Discrimination Act (CADA), whose prohibited employment practices are in C.R.S. 24-34-402 and whose employment discrimination complaints the Colorado Civil Rights Division investigates, and Colorado's statute on lawful off-duty activity. This page does not summarize either one, so check both before a discharge decision. (Colorado Civil Rights Division, Employment discrimination (C.R.S. 24-34-402))

Worked examples

Paperwork on the separation day

A Denver restaurant group ends a line cook's employment on Friday, October 2, 2026. The cook leaves with CDLE's Notice of Potential Availability of Unemployment Insurance Benefits, as Rule 7.3.2.2 requires (the form says hard copy or electronic format). The cook has 36 earned, unused vacation hours at $25.00 an hour, so the separation pay includes $900.00 of vacation wages; a forfeiture clause in the handbook would not remove it. (7 CCR 1101-2, Rule 7.3.2.2; CDLE, Notice of Potential Availability of Unemployment Insurance Benefits; 7 CCR 1103-7, Wage Protection Rules, Rule 2.17)

Directive or no directive

A Colorado Springs manager told an estimator to backdate an invoice; the estimator refused. A month later the manager proposes dismissal for slow output. Because the pattern instructions treat refusals of an improper directive as their own category (31:12), HR separates the productivity record from the refusal and has counsel review the timing before anything happens. (Colorado Pattern Civil Jury Instructions, Chapter 31 (Wrongful Discharge))

How to act on it

Wrongful termination: Colorado and neighboring states

Each state links to its rulebook. Only rules we verified are shown.

Questions about Colorado wrongful termination rules

The verified rules behind this page (5)

• Public policy: Colorado recognizes a tort claim for wrongful discharge in violation of public policy (Martin Marietta Corp. v. Lorenz): a fired employee has a claim if the discharge contravenes a clear mandate of public policy. (Colorado Pattern Civil Jury Instructions, Chapter 31 (Wrongful Discharge), Instruction 31:12, Notes on Use, citing Martin Marietta Corp. v. Lorenz, 823 P.2d 100 (Colo. 1992); Order, No. 1:15-cv-02418 (D. Colo.), discussing Martin Marietta Corp. v. Lorenz, 823 P.2d 100 (Colo. 1992); verified Sep 24, 2026)
• Implied contract: Colorado recognizes an implied-contract exception: termination policies in a handbook or manual can bind the employer if they were an offer the employee accepted by starting or continuing work (Continental Air Lines v. Keenan); a clear and conspicuous disclaimer defeats the claim. (Colorado Pattern Civil Jury Instructions, Chapter 31, Instruction 31:4, Notes on Use, citing Continental Air Lines, Inc. v. Keenan, 731 P.2d 708 (Colo. 1987); Order, No. 1:19-cv-00694-WJM (D. Colo. Sept. 28, 2020), citing Cont'l Air Lines v. Keenan, 731 P.2d 708, 711 (Colo. 1987); verified Sep 24, 2026)
• Good faith covenant: Colorado does not allow a tort claim for breach of the covenant of good faith and fair dealing in an employment contract (Decker v. Browning-Ferris); the public-policy wrongful discharge tort serves that role. (Colorado Pattern Civil Jury Instructions, Chapter 31, Notes on Use, citing Decker v. Browning-Ferris Indus., Inc., 931 P.2d 436 (Colo. 1997); Order, No. 1:15-cv-02418 (D. Colo.), discussing Decker v. Browning-Ferris Industries of Colorado, Inc., 931 P.2d 436 (Colo. 1997); verified Sep 24, 2026)
• Colorado employers must give every worker, upon separation from employment, a notice of the availability of unemployment insurance (hard copy or electronic). CDLE's form 'Notice of Potential Availability of Unemployment Insurance Benefits' also asks for the employee's dates, earnings and the reason for separation. (7 CCR 1101-2, Rule 7.3.2.2; CDLE, Notice of Potential Availability of Unemployment Insurance Benefits (form); verified Sep 24, 2026)
• In Colorado, earned vacation pay counts as wages. If an employer provides paid vacation, it must pay all earned vacation at separation. Policies may cap accrual at one year's worth of vacation pay or more, but they may not forfeit any earned (accrued) vacation pay. (C.R.S. § 8-4-101(14)(a)(III), as quoted in Wage Protection Rules 7 CCR 1103-7, Rule 2.17 (effective February 1, 2026); Wage Protection Rules 7 CCR 1103-7, Rule 2.17.2 (edition effective January 1, 2025); verified Sep 24, 2026)

Sources (11)

• Colorado Pattern Civil Jury Instructions, Chapter 31 (Wrongful Discharge)
• Order, No. 1:15-cv-02418 (D. Colo.), Lorenz and Decker
• Order, No. 1:19-cv-00694-WJM (D. Colo. 2020), Keenan
• 7 CCR 1101-2, Rule 7.3.2.2
• CDLE, Notice of Potential Availability of Unemployment Insurance Benefits
• 7 CCR 1103-7, Wage Protection Rules, Rule 2.17
• EEOC, Prohibited Employment Policies/Practices
• EEOC, Coverage of Business/Private Employers
• U.S. Department of Labor, Fact Sheet 77A
• Colorado Civil Rights Division, Employment discrimination (C.R.S. 24-34-402)
• Wage Protection Rules 7 CCR 1103-7, Rule 2.17.2 (edition effective January 1, 2025)

Checked Sep 24, 2026 · How we verify every rule · Report an error

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