by Jessica Wigent
When legislators and former and current coworkers throughout Gotham the capitol building speak of Jennifer Gilroy, they tell of her marvel-ous superpowers as a fierce defender (of the integrity of the Colorado Revised Statutes), a protector and guardian (of legislative history), and a superintelligent expert (in legislative rules and ethics).
Yet, after 32 years with the Office of Legislative Legal Services, on October 15, 2024, Jennifer Gilroy hung up her cape retired her title of Revisor of Statutes.
While her origin story as an attorney begins in private practice, Jennifer eventually joined the rogues’ esquires’ gallery of the office in 1992, where she has been a major contributor to its success and, in turn, the accomplishments of the General Assembly.
She first started with the Judiciary, Health, and Welfare Team, drafting in the areas of family law, criminal law, and human services. While there, her reputation for dependability and attention to detail and her sharp weapons legal skills and commitment to serving and supporting her colleagues and the members of the General Assembly solidified her role as the archetype of a superhero drafter. With her ability to telepathically agilely communicate, she capably translated the members’ ideas into well-crafted legislation.
As her tenure increased, so did the breadth and complexity of her pursuits and the duties assigned to her. After just two legislative sessions (and with a lasso) under her belt, she was selected as one of the drafters to substantively recodify the Colorado Children’s Code. This mighty and bold task was so extensive and complicated, the herculean effort involved a statutorily created six-member Legislative Oversight Committee, a 24-member recodification task force, four office attorneys, one legislative editor, three Legislative Council staffers, two legislative interims, two legislative sessions, and a number of bills.
Not surprisingly, Jennifer not only survived but thrived in completing this and many other dangerous formidable assignments while continuing to excel in her everyday work for the office. In 1999, she and Julie Pelegrin were named co-titans co-team leaders of the Civil and Criminal Law, Education, and Human Services Team (codename: the LAW Team).
Only five years later, on March 26, 2004, Charlie Pike, then-director of the office, appointed Jennifer to serve as the Revisor of Statutes—a role that she also held under the next three directors. With great power comes great responsibility, and for 20 years she has admirably met the challenges of overseeing the many publications of the office, the enactment of the laws of Colorado each session, the execution of important contracts, and waves of other special responsibilities.
Among her many superabilities, for two decades she has ensured that the Colorado Revised Statutes and Session Laws were published with fidelity and were of the highest quality. Each year, under the supervision and direction of the Committee on Legal Services, and with vital assistance from her trusted sidekicks and associates on the Publications Team and throughout the office, she tackled villainous inconsistencies and rid the statutes of destructively defective structures.
In 2016, Jennifer played a leading role in increasing public access to the online versions of the statutes. She also worked for years alongside her assistant, Nate Carr, to help protect and preserve the legislative historic book collection, rescuing this important history from the damp, dusty bowels of the capitol basement. Aly Jabrocki, who would become the state archivist, also played a part in safeguarding these important materials, the proof of our progress as a state, from theft and destruction.
Regardless of the challenge, Jennifer has always performed to the highest standards of excellence.
If you needed to figure out a complicated conflict between two bills that amended the same statute or the wording for a tricky effective date clause, she’d have your answer in a flash.
Didn’t understand that legislative rule? A quick phone call and she’d be flying from her office to the chamber floor to wade into the murky language and save the day. As Minority Leader Paul Lundeen said on the floor of the Senate earlier this year, Jennifer toiled to ensure that lawmakers “could find that straight and narrow path, apply the rules to get to the best rule of law and governance.”
After the passage of Amendment 41 in 2006, legislators needed someone to help them navigate the new constitutional gift ban and the complicated rules of serving as an elected official subject to public scrutiny. Jennifer rose to the occasion, working tirelessly to provide ethics advice for countless legislators regarding compliance with constitutional, statutory, and rule-based ethics requirements.
Recognized as a “most trusted ethics advisor” by the members of the General Assembly, leaders of both parties sang her praises in August of 2024. As Assistant Minority Leader Bob Gardner noted on the Senate floor, when he came upon a potential ethical issue, he would often send out his version of the bat signal and say “Find Jennifer Gilroy” because he needed a “trusted advisor.” Senator Gardner sang her praises, telling Jennifer: “I’m a better lawyer because of you.” In the House of Representatives, Speaker Julie McCluskie described Jennifer as “the most at-the-ready, eager-to-help, kind, and gentle part of our team when it comes to a question around ethics,” and Majority Leader Monica Duran called her “calm, steadfast, professional in the most stressful of situations.”
Even now, as Jennifer prepares to pass the torch to Yelana Love, she continues working on a vital project, an in-house, innovative creation of new technology to publish the Colorado Revised Statutes called XDOME,[1] which will ensure that the office is prepared to meet the ever-modernizing field of publications.
As one endgame approaches and new multiverses adventures beckon, thank you, Jennifer, for sharing
your superpowers of generosity and selflessness. Your door was always open, and from behind it, you and your stylish sunshine saved many a day, a bill, and more. You have given your time, energy, and talents to your colleagues, to the General Assembly and all who work for it and in it, and to the state of Colorado for more than three decades, and we, to paraphrase Senator Gardner, are better for it.
[1] The Colorado Revised Statutes XML Data Operations and Management Enhancement Project
