Katharine E. Lum

Katharine E. Lum was appointed to the Colorado Court of Appeals in 2022. The commission writes: "This is her first time standing for retention." She is the court's liaison to the 15th Judicial District.

Before joining the bench she was Of Counsel with Cooper Ramp Cage Bucar Lewis and its predecessor firms, where she specialized in domestic relations law at the trial and appellate levels. She clerked for the Honorable Gregory J. Hobbs Jr. of the Colorado Supreme Court and earned her law degree at the University of California Berkeley School of Law. She serves on the Supreme Court Standing Committee on Family Issues, coordinates the Court of Appeals externship program with Colorado law schools and sits on the board of the Minoru Yasui Inn of Court.

The State Commission on Judicial Performance voted 9 to 0 that she meets performance standards, with one commissioner absent and one vacancy on the commission. The commission writes: "Every survey respondent agreed that Judge Lum meets performance standards."

The commission finds that she "embodies the qualities of an outstanding appellate judge and is a valuable asset to the Colorado Court of Appeals." In its words, her opinions "are fair and thoughtful" and she is "an exceptional judicial writer who conveys her opinions in a clear and accessible style understood by litigants, practitioners, and members of the public alike." She "arrives well-prepared to oral arguments, and is engaged, present, and respectful in the Courtroom." Survey respondents praised "her strong listening, polite and respectful nature, and thorough preparation."