Cole Finegan

Cole Finegan is the Managing Partner of the firm's Denver office. He focuses his practice on working locally and nationally with businesses and governmental entities to create and expand public-private partnerships and has also represented clients in regulatory, land use and development, and legislative and public policy law for more than 20 years. Prior to joining the firm, Cole served dual positions as Denver's City Attorney and Chief of Staff to Mayor John Hickenlooper. During his tenure as City Attorney, Cole reorganized the office of 100 attorneys for the first time in 20 years, which saved the city more than $1 million by cutting outside legal services and expanded the city's capabilities to try its own cases. As Chief of Staff, he led the successful campaign to change Denver's charter to add a Chief Financial Officer and to modernize the city's 100-year-old financial services structure. In private practice and in public life, Cole has been involved in almost every major private-public partnership in Denver, including the redevelopment of Stapleton Airport, the Gates Rubber Company facility, and most recently Denver Union Station. From 1993 to 2003, Cole was a partner at a national law firm in Denver. While there, he represented clients in land use issues, regulatory and administrative matters, municipal law, legislative law, and election law. Cole served both as Chief Legal Counsel and Director of Policy and Initiatives for Colorado Governor Roy Romer from 1991 to 1993. During that period, he handled the Governor's legal matters, advised the Governor on judicial appointments, and supervised a policy development staff of 60 persons working on economic, environmental, health care, energy, telecommunications, transportation, and education policy issues. Cole also worked in Washington, D.C. as Chief Legislative Assistant and then Chief of Staff to U.S. Representative James R. Jones of Oklahoma. Representative Jones chaired the U.S House of Representatives' Budget Committee from 1981-1985 and chaired the House Ways and Means' Subcommittee on Trade.