Katherine R. Chadek

Attorney – Owner

Expert Overview

Katherine R. Chadek Attorney at Law

Practice States and Other Jurisdictions:
Colorado
Nebraska

Practice Description

Guardian ad Litem (attorney representing the best interests of children in court involved matters) contracted through Office of the Child's Representative. OCR attorneys provide competent and effective legal representation to Colorado’s children involved in the court system because they have been abused and neglected, impacted by high conflict parenting time disputes, or charged with delinquent acts and are without a parent able to provide relevant information to the court or protect their best interests during the proceedings. I provide services as Guardian ad Litem in Dependency and Neglect matters; Juvenile Delinquency/Truancy; Domestic Relations; Adoption; and Mental Health cases.

Juvenile Law
If you are looking for an attorney who has your child’s best interest at heart and has the perseverance to follow through, you are in the right place! I provide a whole-person approach to juvenile delinquency and special education issues that take into account your child’s physical and mental well-being as well as their individual identity (racial, ethnic, gender, sexual orientation, immigration status, disability, etc.) and the impact that may have on their case. I follow your wishes and values while safeguarding your child’s due process rights. I zealously advocate for your child at all stages of the court proceeding and ensure that their voice is heard in court.

I believe that kids are usually not ‘bad’ at their core, rather they may have learned 'bad' behaviors because of the environments they have been living in. Sometimes kids with special needs get into difficult situations because of the unique challenges they face. Sometimes it doesn't matter if they were raised with good values, they still get into trouble. My priority is to make sure these children receive the best care possible with the least long-term repercussions. Juvenile justice is all about rehabilitation, not punishment.

Attorney Biography

I grew up on a farm in Nebraska. I came to law later in life after finding it challenging to engage an attorney when my daughter needed one. Sometimes good kids fall into bad situations and need legal help! I was busy working full time so it was hard to take the time to find a lawyer. It was also difficult to know if an attorney was going to be the best advocate for my daughter. I ended up hiring someone who did not deliver as well as I knew was possible so I decided I had to do something myself. That’s when I took the plunge and went to law school - at age 50!

Before law school, I worked many years as an administrative assistant and I ran my own daycare business. I was interested in the law, but did not think I could be a lawyer myself. I have always cared deeply about kids and I learned a lot about child development as I built my daycare business. So I started volunteering as a court-appointed special advocate (CASA). This allowed me to help kids who were in difficult situations and learn about the legal system. Through my work as a CASA, I observed the full range of lawyers, how they treated their clients, their families and other attorneys. I saw how important it was for kids to have an adult advocating for them and felt really good about providing that through my volunteer work. I also learned about the effects of trauma, abuse and neglect on children. This knowledge and sensitivity is now central to my practice and continues to benefit my clients.

My interest in Elder Law and Estate Planning started in Law School and deepened as members of my own family began aging. Our family dynamics, like most family’s dynamics, are complicated. It is hard to know when an elder member of the family is or is not able to make beneficial decisions on their own behalf as their mental health changes. I’ve also seen families lose major assets because an elder member of the family made a decision without knowledge or the mental capacity to understand the consequences of their actions. I protect elders and families from facing these types of losses through my role as legal representative (guardian ad litem or conservator) and by creating living wills before these types of circumstances become an issue. My first hand experience adds to my sensitivity to the range of concerns among family members.

Practice Areas

Juvenile Guardian ad Litem (dependency and neglect); Juvenile Delinquency; Guardian ad Litem in domestic relations cases; Adoption, truancy, probate (guardianships), mental health and paternity. Elder law; Guardianship/Conservatorships; Probate; Wills and Living Wills, and Power of Attorney document drafting.

Contact This Attorney

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Colorado W.O.L.F. (Woman Owned Law Firms) is the only Colorado bar association specifically created to support women who own their own law firms. A not-for-profit organization, Colorado W.O.L.F. provides opportunities throughout the State of Colorado for advancement, collaboration, education, and networking for these legal entrepreneurs.