(She/Her)
- 2023 Denver “Top Lawyer” for Civil Rights and Employment Law by 5280 Magazine
- The Best Lawyers® 2020 “Lawyer of the Year for Plaintiff’s Employment Law” in Colorado
- Colorado Super Lawyers® in Employment and Labor
- Top 50 Women Lawyers
- Martindale-Hubbell® Highest AV (preeminent) Rated
Email: pg@greisenmedlock.com
Paula Greisen has dedicated her entire legal career to vindicating her clients’ civil rights. Her practice focuses on all aspects of employment discrimination, the advancement and protection of LGTBQ rights, and government abuse of power cases. She has successfully represented a wide variety of clients against some of the biggest companies and law firms in this country, as well as the local, state, and federal governments, fighting aggressively for her clients when their civil rights have been violated.
As a staunch advocate for her clients, Paula is a leader in the legal and civil rights community. She was the lead trial lawyer representing the gay couple in the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Masterpiece Cakeshop. In that case, a cakeshop owner refused to serve the couple based on his religious beliefs. While Paula is a staunch advocate of the First Amendment and the freedom of religion, she believes that the rights of the LGTBQ community must be protected in the same manner as gender, age, disability, and other protected groups. She is also lead counsel in a class action on behalf of transgender women in the Colorado prison system who are fighting for equal protection and respect for their gender identity.
In addition to fighting for her clients, Paula has helped the community by volunteering her time to help members of the community. She is currently serving on the Board of Directors for OneColorado – the largest and most effective advocacy organization for LGTBQ rights in Colorado and has worked with other LGTBQ advocacy groups across the country. For decades, she has been on the Board of Directors of Colorado Legal Service, the organization that provides legal aid to those in poverty in Colorado. She has also served on the board of a non-profit organization that fights for fair treatment of low-wage earners, on the Board of the Plaintiffs Employment Lawyers Association, and on the Legal Panel for the American Civil Liberties Union. She was previously the President of the Faculty of Federal Advocates – the group of lawyers that practice in our federal courts and has served on the ethics committee for the federal court.
Paula has been repeatedly recognized in The Best Lawyers in America, as a “SuperLawyer” in Colorado, and as a “Top lawyer” in Denver. She has also been recognized as a “Top 50 Women Lawyers in Colorado” by 5280 Magazine and has won numerous awards, including the Colorado Trial Lawyers Association “Case of the Year” award for her representation of over 3000 people with disabilities who were incarcerated in inhumane conditions. She has represented a range of clients – including the waitresses who had their wages stolen to top executives of Fortune 500 companies. Paula is regularly asked to teach various employment and civil rights issues and is regularly consulted as an expert on civil rights issues.
In 2011, Ms. Greisen received the Edward Sherman Award from the ACLU of Colorado for her outstanding legal work to ensure equal access for people with disabilities in the Colorado state prison system. In 2003, Ms. Greisen received the Colorado Trial Lawyers Association Case of the Year Award for her work as lead counsel on a successful ten-year class action disabilities case against the State of Colorado. She also received the University of Colorado’s School of Law Alumni Association’s Young Lawyer of the Year Award for 2000.
Ms. Greisen graduated from the University of Colorado School of Law in 1990. She received her Geological Engineering degree from the University of Oklahoma, where she graduated first in her class.
News Highlights
Paula Greisen was invited to speak at the National Constitution Center about the lawsuit she filed when a baker refused to make a cake to celebrate an LGBTQ+ couple’s wedding. https://www.c-span.org/video/?439835-1/panelists-debate-religious-freedom-equal-rights
Law Week Colorado named Paula Greisen a “lawyer of the year” for her work representing victims of discrimination.
https://www.lawweekcolorado.com/article/2018-lawyers-of-the-year-paula-greisen/
Paula Greisen spoke out against a political action committee that is attempting to prevent trans athletes from playing sports.
https://coloradonewsline.com/2022/10/31/colorado-group-trans-athletes-womens-sports/
In 2011, the ACLU of Colorado honored Paula Greisen for her work on behalf of people imprisoned in Colorado, including over three thousand Colorado prisoners with disabilities who the Colorado Department of Corrections was not accommodating.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJoJkjA-JmE
Greisen Medlock attorneys sue fertility doctor for using his own sperm during insemination
https://www.gjsentinel.com/news/western_colorado/more-plaintiffs-accuse-grand-junction-fertility-doctor-of-using-his-own-sperm-to-impregnate-patients/article_7f0cdbee-fb9f-11e9-af05-20677ce05640.html
Greisen Medlock attorney serves as best lawyer’s panelist for a landmark supreme court case affirming LGBTQ rights in employment
Panel: LGBTQ SCOTUS Ruling | Best Lawyers
Gay couple sue cakeshop for refusal to sell a wedding cake
Greisen files Sexual Harassment Charge of Discrimination on behalf of Student by university professor
Regis University hit with sexual harassment claim | FOX31 Denver (kdvr.com)
Grandmother fired after Giving Employer Notice of Breast Cancer Diagnosis
Problem Solvers: Grandmother says she was fired for breast cancer diagnosis | FOX31 Denver (kdvr.com)
Employers Sued after Taking Nurse Hostage During Active Shooter Drill
Colorado nurse sues after being a ‘hostage’ in armed gunman drill (yahoo.com)
Text of lawsuit against Carbondale nursing home | PostIndependent.com
‘Active Shooter’ Drills Spark Raft of Legal Complaints – WSJ
Waitresses discriminated against on the basis of gender at a popular Denver restaurant
Sushi Den: Investigator discredits female employees’ discrimination complaint | FOX31 Denver (kdvr.com)
Teachers forced out of job after developing disabilities
Douglas County School District accused of forcing two ill teachers into retirement – The Denver Post
Cab Company Sued for Sexual Harassment and Retaliation of Female Workers
Gourley v. Yellow Transp., LLC, 178 F. Supp. 2d 1196 (D. Colo. 2001) :: Justia
Parking Lot Workers File Discrimination Suit Alleging Unfair Working Conditions
Parking-lot workers file bias claims – The Denver Post
