(1) Any employer who violates the provisions of section
8-4-103 (6) commits:
(a) A petty offense if the amount is less than three hundred dollars;
(b) A class 2 misdemeanor if the amount is three hundred dollars or more but less than
one thousand dollars;
(c) A class 1 misdemeanor if the amount is one thousand dollars or more but less than
two thousand dollars;
(d) A class 6 felony if the amount is two thousand dollars or more but less than five
thousand dollars;
(e) A class 5 felony if the amount is five thousand dollars or more but less than twenty
thousand dollars;
(f) A class 4 felony if the amount is twenty thousand dollars or more but less than one
hundred thousand dollars;
(g) A class 3 felony if the amount is one hundred thousand dollars or more but less than
one million dollars; and
(h) A class 2 felony if the amount is one million dollars or more.
(2) In addition to any other penalty imposed by this article 4, any employer or agent of
an employer who willfully refuses to pay wages or compensation as provided in this article 4, or
falsely denies the amount of a wage claim, or the validity thereof, or that the same is due, with
intent to secure for himself, herself, or another person any discount upon such indebtedness or
any underpayment of such indebtedness or with intent to annoy, harass, oppress, hinder, coerce,
delay, or defraud the person to whom such indebtedness is due, commits theft as defined in
section 18-4-401.
Source: L. 2003: Entire article amended with relocations, p. 1859, § 1, effective August
6. L. 2019: (2) amended, (HB 19-1267), ch. 182, p. 2059, § 3, effective January 1, 2020. L.
2021: (1) amended, (SB 21-271), ch. 462, p. 3140, § 87, effective March 1, 2022.
Editor's note: This section is similar to former §§ 8-4-116 and 8-4-117 as they existed
prior to 2003, and the former § 8-4-114 was repealed.
Cross references: (1) For the penalty for a petty offense, see § 18-1.3-503; for the
penalty for a class 1 or class 2 misdemeanor, see § 18-1.3-501; and for the penalty for a class 2,
class 3, class 4, class 5, or class 6 felony, see § 18-1.3-401.
(2) For the legislative declaration in HB 19-1267, see section 1 of chapter 182, Session
Laws of Colorado 2019.
Notes of Decisions
Cited in
48
cases (
2 in the last 5 years), 1975–2026 · leading case:
Voller v. Gertz, 107 P.3d 1129 (Colo. Ct. App. 2004).
Voller v. Gertz, 107 P.3d 1129 (Colo. Ct. App. 2004).
· cites it 46× “Specifically, she contends that the former § 8-4-114, Colo. Sess. Laws 1967, ch. 398, § 80-8-14 at 861 (repealed Colo.”
Koontz v. Rosener, 787 P.2d 192 (Colo. Ct. App. 1990).
· cites it 10× “court erred in failing to award them reasonable attorney fees as the “winning party” pursuant to § 8-4-114, C.R.S. (1986 Repl.Vol. 3B). We disagree.”
Van Steenhouse v. Jacor Broad. of Colorado, Inc., 958 P.2d 464 (Colo. 1998).
· cites it 16× “(Jacor) qualified as a “winning party” entitled to reasonable attorney fees pursuant to section 8-4-114, 3 *466 C.R.S. (1997). We affirm in part and reverse in part.”
Wilson v. Bd. of Cnty. Commissioners of Adams, 703 P.2d 1257 (Colo. 1985).
· cites it 6× “(1973), see section 8-4-114, 3 C.R.S. (1973), 1 and because her pursuit of the constructive discharge claim in the district court was in the nature of a private attorney general’s action.”
Mahan v. Capitol Hill Internal Med. P.C., 151 P.3d 685 (Colo. Ct. App. 2006).
· cites it 6× “Attorney Fees Under the Colorado Wage Act Following the jury’s verdict, Capitol Hill filed a motion for attorney fees pursuant to former § 8-4-114, Colo. Sess. Laws 1967, ch. 398, § 80-8-14 at 861 (repealed at Colo.”
Mau v. E.P.H. Corp., 638 P.2d 777 (Colo. 1981).
· cites it 6× “2d 1318 (1979), an employee action for past compensation and vacation pay, we upheld the award of attorneys’ fees under section 8-4-114, C.R.S. 1973, as reasonable based upon the factors set out in C.”
Lee v. Great Empire Broad., Inc., 794 P.2d 1032 (Colo. Ct. App. 1989).
· cites it 6× “In addition, since it was necessary for plaintiff to institute suit to collect this amount, defendant was liable to pay to him a reasonable attor *1037 ney fee under § 8-4-114, C.R.S. (1986 Repl. Vol. 3B). Hence, upon remand, the trial court shall determine and assess a…”
Porter v. Castle Rock Ford Lincoln Mercury, Inc., 895 P.2d 1146 (Colo. Ct. App. 1995).
· cites it 6× “ees in favor of plaintiff, defendant first contends that, while plaintiff prevailed only on the wage and penalty claims, defendant prevailed against plaintiffs punitive damages claim and on its counterclaim, both under the trial court’s initial ruling and possibly upon remand as…”
Remote Switch Sys., Inc. v. Delangis, 126 P.3d 269 (Colo. Ct. App. 2005).
· cites it 4× “At the time the trial court entered final judgment, § 8-4-114 provided: Whenever it [is] necessary for an employee to commence a civil action for the recovery or collection of wages and penalties due as provided by sections [8-4-104] and [8-4-105], the judgment in such action…”
Hofer v. Polly Little Realtors, Inc., 543 P.2d 114 (Colo. Ct. App. 1975).
· cites it 12× “They bring this appeal on the sole ground that it was error to deny them an award of reasonable attorney fees as provided for in § 8-4-114, C.R.S.1973. We reverse. At trial, no evidence of attorney fees was presented, the matter having been reserved.”
— Colo. Rev. Stat. § 8-4-114(2) — 1 case
Annotations are extracted automatically from the opinions in the
Syfert caselaw corpus and ranked by authority, recency, and
treatment. Dots show Syfertize treatment of the citing case itself.