Press Releases
Our initial press release is about our campaign against renomination of Denver County Probate Judge Elizabeth Leith. Judge Leith is the sole judge on the Denver Probate Court. She is up for renomination in 2026 for another six-year term. The Probate Trap opposes renomination.
PRESS RELEASE – COLORADO PROBATE JUDGE IN THE SPOTLIGHT
PRESS RELEASE - COLORADO PROBATE JUDGE IN THE SPOTLIGHT
The Colorado-based guardianship and probate watchdog group Families Against Court Embezzlement Unethical Standards (F.A.C.E.U.S.) (www.probatetrap.org) opposes renomination of Probate Judge Elizabeth Leith for an additional term.
Leith (shown left) has been a Colorado judge since the late 1980’s. In 2011, she was appointed as the sole judge in the Denver Probate Court. She is up for renomination this year for another -year term.
Judge Elizabeth Leith, Denver Probate Court, Denver, Colorado
In May 2026, we delivered to Governor Jared Polis a set of 13 statements about Judge Leith, supporting of our opposition to renomination.
We are also circulating a petition urging Govenor Polis not to renominate Judge Leith. Please sign the petition here: https://www.change.org/Dont-Reappoint-Judge-Leith
Adult guardianship records are sealed in Colorado, so we have only a partial picture of Judge Leith’s actions. Moreover, parties and their family members are often afraid to go public with their concerns. They fear retaliation, either by Judge Leith or by guardianship professionals.
Thus, the stories documented in our submission to Governor Polis are, in all likelihood, only a fraction of the full story.
The 32-page F.A.C.E.U.S. report to Governor Polis shows a judge who is at the center of a cadre of guardians and lawyers who target vulnerable people, and impose expensive professional guardianships on them. Professional guardianships can generate enormous fees for attorneys, guardians, conservators and other “caregivers,” The fees in a single case can involve millions of dollars.
Once a person is placed under guardianship, their assets are used to pay for the guardian, lawyers, and often unnecessary “care.” Professional bills are routinely approved. Family member complaints are ignored.
We started F.A.C.E.U.S. in 2016. We run a weekly podcast, now approaching 500 episodes. We have learned through our own experience and that of many others, that anyone can be declared incapacitated, imprisoned in a nursing home, isolated from family, and lose control over their own money to professionals. Escape from the “probate trap” is rare and often impossible.
We encourage persons whose families are victims of guardianship abuse to contact us to tell your story.
Luanne Fleming contact: probatetrap@proton.me
Robin Austin contact: probatetrap@proton.me