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Fort Collins Criminal Defense Law Firm
Overview
Derek Samuelson is a trial lawyer who specializes in criminal defense. From his Fort Collins law office, Mr. Samuelson is proud to provide comprehensive legal representation to people charged with criminal offenses throughout northern Colorado.
He has defended clients against everything from DUI charges to the death penalty and has established a track record of trial success in the process...
Derek Samuelson is a trial lawyer who specializes in criminal defense. From his Fort Collins law office, Mr. Samuelson is proud to provide comprehensive legal representation to people charged with criminal offenses throughout northern Colorado.
He has defended clients against everything from DUI charges to the death penalty and has established a track record of trial success in the process. Before entering private practice, Mr. Samuelson spent more than a decade representing people charged with felonies and misdemeanors for the Colorado State Public Defender in the Fort Collins, Greeley and Denver Regional Offices.
In 2008, Mr. Samuelson was honored with the 'Attorney of the Year' Award from the Colorado State Public Defender for outstanding service in the practice of criminal defense. He was selected from over 300 criminal defense attorneys statewide for the award.
Mr. Samuelson's courtroom experience is extensive. He has handled thousands of criminal cases and defended clients charged with virtually every crime on the books in Colorado. He has tried and won many complex high-profile cases.
Mr. Samuelson received his law degree from the University of Denver where he graduated with high academic honors, earning membership to the Law Review and the Order of St. Ives (top 10% of the class). Mr. Samuelson earned his Bachelor's Degree from the University of Vermont, where he was a Dean's List student and captained a nationally-ranked NCAA Division I soccer team.
Away from the courtroom, Mr. Samuelson teaches continuing legal education courses to other attorneys on such topics as trial tactics, cross-examination, death penalty jury selection, and DUI defense. Mr. Samuelson is a member of the Colorado Criminal Defense Bar Association, the Colorado Bar Association, and the Larimer County Bar Association. He has also served on the Weld County Criminal Justice Advisory Committee and the Larimer County Juvenile Drug Court Board.
About Samuelson Law, P.C.
Previous Law Firm Name
- Derek Samuelson
Practice Areas
- Criminal Defense
- Drug and Narcotics Defense
- All Felonies and Misdemeanors
- Sex Assault Defense
- White Collar Criminal Defense
- Juvenile Defense
- DUI Defense
- Trial Practice
Litigation
- 100%
Honors
- 'Attorney of the Year' awarded by the Colorado State Public Defender, 2008
- Order of St. Ives (Top 10% of Graduating Law School Class) and Law Review Member
Classes and Seminars
- Lecturer, The Role of Toxicology in Criminal Cases, Colorado State University, Dept. of Environmental and Radiological Health Sciences, Fort Collins, CO, - April 30, 2019
- Lecturer, Title IX - Defending Sexual Misconduct Claims in Schools, Colleges & Universities, NITA (National Institute for Trial Advocacy), Boulder, CO, - February 7, 2019
- Lecturer, The Role of Toxicology in Criminal Cases, Colorado State University, Dept. of Environmental and Radiological Health Sciences, Fort Collins, CO, - May 3, 2018
- Instructor, Capital Jury Selection: The Colorado Method, Contra Costa County Public Defender, Martinez, California, March 29, 2018 - March 30, 2018
- Lecturer, Jury Deselection that Works … and Doesn't Alienate Your Judge (with District Court Judge Thomas French), Larimer County Bar Association, Ft. Collins, June 5, 2013
- Faculty, National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Capital Voir Dire Training, CU Law School, Boulder, CO, May 16, 2013 - May 17, 2013
- Faculty, South Carolina Commission on Indigent Defense, Capital Voir Dire Training, Myrtle Beach, CO, April 29, 2013
- Faculty, Arizona Public Defender Association, Colorado Method of Capital Voir Dire Training: Theory and Intensive Practice, Tempe, AZ, June 18, 2012 - June 20, 2012
- Faculty, Oklahoma Indigent Defense System - Federal Grant Training, Norman, Oklahoma, May 18, 2011 - May 19, 2011
- Faculty, National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Capital Voir Dire Training, CU Law School, Boulder, CO, May 12, 2011 - May 13, 2011
- Faculty: National Legal Aid & Defender Association, Life in the Balance, Annual National Conference, Orlando, FL, March 5, 2011
- Faculty, National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Capital Voir Dire Training, CU Law School, Boulder, CO, May 16, 2012 - May 18, 2012
- Faculty, National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Capital Voir Dire Training, CU Law School, Boulder, CO, May 14, 2010 - May 15, 2010
- Mitigation Themes: Applying them to the Colorado Method of Jury Selection, ADC Death Penalty Mitigation Program, Denver, CO, May 6, 2010
- Tying Trauma to the Colorado Method: Application of Theory to Practice, ADC Death Penalty Mitigation Program, Denver, CO, May 7, 2010
- Proper File Documentation (with Tamara Brady, Chief Trial Deputy, Colorado State Public Defender), Colorado State Public Defender Annual Conference, Crested Butte, CO, November 14, 2009
- Faculty, National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Capital Voir Dire Training, CU Law School, Boulder, CO, May 8, 2009
- The Colorado Court of Appeals "Courts in the Community" Workshop (with Judge Dave Furman, Colorado Court of Appeals), Poudre High School, Fort Collins, CO, January 30, 2009
- Cross-Examining the Snitch Witness, Colorado State Public Defender Annual Conference, Crested Butte, CO, November 22, 2008
- Overview of the Colorado Method of Capital Jury Selection (with Doug Wilson, Colorado State Public Defender), Colorado State Public Defender Annual Conference, Crested Butte, CO, November 22, 2008
- Faculty, Colorado Public Defender Boot Camp Training Program, Denver, CO, July 13, 2008
- Faculty, National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Capital Voir Dire Training, CU Law School, Boulder, CO, May 17, 2008 - May 18, 2008
- Panelist, Criminal Justice Panel Discussion hosted by Weld County Chamber of Commerce Leadership Committee (with Weld County District Attorney Ken Buck and Weld County District Court Judge Marcelo Kopkow), Greeley, CO, April 13, 2006
- The Mission of the Public Defender, Kiwanis Club, Greeley, CO, February 15, 2006
- Lecturer, The Role of the Prosecutor vs. the Role of Defense Counsel (with Chief Deputy Weld County District Attorney Zeke Knox), University of Northern Colorado, Greeley, CO, October 27, 2005
- Lecturer, Sane Nurses and Debunking Medical Mythology in Sex Assault Cases (with Deputy State Public Defenders Jamie Roth and Sheryl Uhlmann), Public Defender Annual Conference, Breckenridge, CO, September 20, 2004
- Lecturer, Defending the DUI, Colorado State Public Defender Lecture Series, Denver, CO, June 4, 2004
- Lecturer, The Role of Defense Counsel, University of Northern Colorado, Greeley, CO, October 27, 2003
Fees
Offers Free Initial Consultation
Accepts Credit Cards
Office Information
Address
215 West Oak StreetSuite 601 Fort Collins, CO 80521
Office Hours
8:30 AM to 5:00 PM
Phone
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