CO BAR Cheat Sheet 2026

The 30 highest-yield CO BAR facts, distilled from real exam questions. Print it, save it as a PDF, or study it here — free, no sign-up.

1. Under the Colorado Uniform Partnership Act, absent a partnership agreement, partners share profits and losses: → Equally regardless of capital contributions
2. Which secondary source would most efficiently give a researcher an overview of an unfamiliar area of Colorado practice? → A Colorado-specific practice treatise or CLE handbook
3. Which secondary source would be most useful for understanding how courts interpret a specific Colorado statute? → An annotated statute with case law annotations
4. What is relevance in evidence law? → Evidence that has any tendency to make a material fact more or less probable
5. In Colorado, where would you find binding precedents for state law? → Colorado Supreme Court opinions
6. When researching Colorado statutes, which of the following resources provides the most authoritative version of Colorado laws? → Colorado Revised Statutes (CRS) published online by the Colorado General Assembly
7. The Anti-Commandeering doctrine prohibits the federal government from: → Directing state legislatures to enact federal regulatory programs
8. A Colorado corporation's articles of incorporation must include all of the following EXCEPT: → The names and addresses of initial directors
9. An agency decision is challenged as arbitrary and capricious under C.R.S. § 24-4-106(7). This standard asks primarily whether the agency: → Failed to consider relevant factors or lacked a rational basis for its action
10. Which research tool organizes case law by topic using numbered subject classifications? → West Key Number System
11. In reviewing a Colorado agency's factual findings after a formal hearing, a court will set them aside only if they are: → Unsupported by substantial evidence in the record as a whole
12. In a Colorado divorce proceeding, which factor is NOT considered in determining the division of marital property? → The fault of either party in the dissolution of the marriage
13. What is the double jeopardy clause? → The Fifth Amendment prohibition against being tried twice for the same offense
14. What is an agency's enabling statute? → The law enacted by Congress that creates the agency and defines its authority and powers
15. Article VI of the U.S. Constitution's Supremacy Clause means that when valid federal law conflicts with state law: → Federal law preempts state law
16. Under the Equal Protection Clause, which classification triggers heightened (intermediate) scrutiny? → Sex/gender
17. Which source is primary authority for a Colorado legal issue? → A Colorado Supreme Court opinion
18. Session laws enacted by the Colorado General Assembly are published chronologically in: → Session Laws of Colorado
19. In Colorado, which of the following is considered a defense to a charge of theft? → The defendant had consent from a third party to take the property.
20. Under the Establishment Clause, a government action is least likely to be constitutional when it: → Endorses a particular religion
21. The Takings Clause of the Fifth Amendment, applicable to Colorado via the Fourteenth Amendment, requires just compensation when government: → Takes private property for public use
22. When a Colorado court reviews an agency's interpretation of its own governing statute, the court: → Gives the interpretation deference but is not bound and decides legal questions de novo
23. Piercing the corporate veil in Colorado allows courts to hold shareholders personally liable when: → The corporation is used as an alter ego or to perpetrate fraud or injustice
24. Under substantive due process, which right is considered a fundamental right requiring strict scrutiny if burdened by government action? → Right to interstate travel
25. Under the exhaustion doctrine in Colorado administrative law, a court will generally decline review unless the plaintiff has: → Pursued all available administrative remedies before suing
26. Where are Colorado statutes officially codified? → Colorado Revised Statutes (C.R.S.)
27. Which regional reporter publishes decisions of the Colorado Supreme Court? → Pacific Reporter (P.3d)
28. When a Colorado statute and a Colorado Supreme Court common-law rule conflict on the same issue, which controls? → The statute, unless it is unconstitutional
29. A researcher needs a municipal law issue for the City and County of Denver. The controlling local enactments are found in: → The Denver Revised Municipal Code
30. What is the right to a speedy trial? → The Sixth Amendment right to be tried without unnecessary delay after being charged