Fort Collins Criminal Defense Lawyer
Derek Samuelson is a trial lawyer who specializes in criminal defense. Mr. Samuelson has been ranked as a Top 100 Trial Lawyer by the National Trial Lawyers. He is AV® Preeminent™ Peer Review Rated by Martindale-Hubbell®, the highest recognition possible in the legal industry. Mr. Samuelson has also been named to Colorado Super Lawyers and has been honored in The Best Lawyers in America®. He enjoys a Superb 10/10 rating from Avvo.
Mr. Samuelson is proud to provide comprehensive legal representation to people charged with criminal offenses throughout northern Colorado. Mr. Samuelson 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. He served in the Fort Collins, Greeley, and Denver offices and was chosen to serve on the Capital Defense Unit. Mr. Samuelson is a recipient of the ‘Attorney of the Year’ Award from the Colorado State Public Defender for outstanding service in the practice of criminal defense. He was chosen from over 300 criminal defense attorneys across Colorado 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 taken more than 100 cases to jury trial 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 is a frequent lecturer at colleges and law schools and teaches continuing legal education courses all over the county to other lawyers on such topics as trial tactics, cross-examination, and death penalty jury selection.
Mr. Samuelson is a member of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Colorado Criminal Defense Bar Association, the Colorado Bar Association, and the Larimer County Bar Association. He has also served on the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers Title IX Committee, National Legal Aid & Defender Association Advisory Board, the Weld County Criminal Justice Advisory Committee, and the Larimer County Juvenile Drug Court Board.
To learn more about Derek Samuelson’s background and practice, please follow the link below:
Contact us by e-mail or call us at 970-493-4371.