2023 Colorado Revised Statutes › Title 6 - CONSUMER AND COMMERCIAL AFFAIRS (§§ 6-1-101 — 6-28-102) › FAIR TRADE AND RESTRAINT OF TRADE (§§ 6-1-101 — 6-6.5-101) › Article 4 - COLORADO ANTITRUST ACT OF 2023 (§§ 6-4-101 — 6-4-122) › Section 6-4-111 - Civil discovery request - rules

(1)
When the attorney general has reasonable cause to believe that any person has engaged in, is engaging in, or may have information related to a violation of this article 4 or of any provision of the federal antitrust statutes that may be enforced by the attorney general, the attorney general may:
(a)
Request the person, under oath or otherwise and on forms prescribed by the attorney general, to file a statement or report in writing, or to answer in writing, any questions propounded by the attorney general as to all facts and circumstances reasonably related to the alleged or potential violation and to provide any other data and information the attorney general reasonably deems necessary;
(b)
Issue subpoenas to require the attendance of witnesses or the production of relevant documents, administer oaths, conduct hearings in aid of an investigation or inquiry, and prescribe forms and adopt rules as may reasonably be deemed necessary to administer this section; and
(c)
Make true copies, at the expense of the attorney general, of any documents examined pursuant to subsection (1)(b) of this section, which copies may be offered into evidence in lieu of the originals in any civil action brought pursuant to this article 4. The person producing the documents may require that the attorney general make copies of the documents. If the attorney general determines the use of originals is necessary, the attorney general shall pay to have copies of those documents made for use by the person producing the documents.
(2)
Service of any request or subpoena must be made in the manner prescribed by law.
(3)
Any written response, testimony, or documents obtained by the attorney general pursuant to this section, or any information derived directly or indirectly from such written response, testimony, or documents, is not admissible in evidence in any criminal prosecution against the person providing the written response, testimony, or documents. The provisions of this subsection (3) shall not be construed to prevent any law enforcement officer, having an independent basis to produce or obtain the facts, information, or evidence, from producing or obtaining the same or similar facts, information, or evidence for use in any criminal prosecution.
(4)
Nothing in this section prohibits the attorney general from disclosing information obtained pursuant to this section to any other law enforcement agency, department of any governmental or public entity of this or any other state, or the federal government if such other law enforcement agency or department executes an agreement that the information will remain confidential and will not be used in any criminal prosecution against the person providing the written response, testimony, or documents.
(5)
If any person fails to appear or fails to cooperate with any investigation or inquiry pursuant to a request or subpoena issued pursuant to this section, the attorney general may apply to any district court for an appropriate order to effect the purposes of this section. The application must state that there is reasonable cause to believe that the order applied for is necessary to investigate, prosecute, or terminate a violation of this article 4. If the court is satisfied that reasonable cause exists, the court may:
(a)
Require the attendance of, or the production of documents by, the person, or both;
(b)
Assess a civil penalty of up to five thousand dollars for the failure to appear and answer questions, written or otherwise, or the failure to produce documents, unless the court finds that the failure to appear, to answer questions, or to produce documents was substantially justified or that other circumstances make an assessment of a civil penalty unjust;
(c)
Award the attorney general reasonable costs and attorney fees in making this application, unless the court finds that the failure to appear, to answer questions, or to produce documents was substantially justified or that other circumstances make an award of costs and attorney fees unjust;
(d)
Enter any protective order as provided for in the Colorado rules of civil procedure; and
(e)
Grant such other or further relief as may be necessary to obtain compliance by the person.
(6)
(a)
The attorney general may deem any investigative records or records regarding intelligence information obtained under this article 4 public records subject to public inspection pursuant to part 2 of article
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of title
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.
(b)
Nothing in this subsection (6) shall be construed to prevent or limit the attorney general's authority to issue public statements describing or warning of any course of conduct or conspiracy that violates this article 4, whether the public statements are made on a local, statewide, regional, or nationwide basis.
Amended by 2023 Ch. 427,§ 2, eff. 6/7/2023.
L. 92: Entire article R&RE, p. 241, § 1, effective July 1. L. 93: (1) amended, p. 1574, § 4, effective July 1.