Colorado’s governor, Jared Polis, and the Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment have issued a Public Health Order requiring Coloradans to stay at home. However, the Order indicates that “critical businesses” are exempt, subject to some limitations.
The Order outlines 13 categories of critical businesses. One of those categories — Financial and Professional Institutions — explicitly states that legal services are exempt from the Order. As such, law firms may continue operating in the state of Colorado.
However, even critical businesses are to comply with social distancing requirements at all times. In Colorado, those requirements are as follows:
Maintain at least a 6-foot distance from other individuals,
Wash hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds as frequently as possible, or use hand sanitizer,
Cover coughs or sneezes using a sleeve or elbow, rather than hands,
Clean high-touch surfaces regularly, and
Refrain from shaking hands.
The Order also requires critical business to adopt work-from-home or telework policies for any operations that can be done remotely, and implement any other strategies available to create more distance between workers as they carry out the critical functions of their position.