Colorado Courts Test CourtCall After Webex Disruptions

Colorado’s Judicial Branch is testing CourtCall in selected courtrooms across 16 counties after repeated disruptions on Webex, the platform courts have used for remote proceedings. The pilot is scheduled to run through the end of October 2026, though the Judicial Department has said testing could continue longer if more time is needed. CourtCall is not yet a permanent statewide replacement for Webex.

The change affects people who have already received court approval to appear virtually, including parties, attorneys, witnesses and other participants. CourtCall is active or scheduled in courtrooms in Adams, Arapahoe, Bent, Boulder, Clear Creek, Crowley, Denver, Douglas, Fremont, Grand, Jefferson, Lake, Larimer, Mesa, Otero and Weld counties.

Which courtrooms are changing platforms

The Colorado Judicial Branch’s Digital Court page lists courtroom-specific transition dates. The listed dates run through Aug. 17, 2026, when Jefferson County’s Division 14 courtroom is scheduled to begin using CourtCall. Other listed examples include Denver Probate Court, a Boulder County jail courtroom, courtrooms in Adams and Jefferson counties, and several courtrooms on the Western Slope and Eastern Plains.

The page warns that short links currently routing users to Webex will begin routing to CourtCall on the dates shown. Residents should bookmark the Digital Court page rather than an old courtroom link so they receive the appropriate platform on the day of their hearing.

Courtrooms not listed on the page are likely still using Webex, according to the Judicial Branch. Residents should not assume the platform change applies to every Colorado court or every hearing in a participating county.

How approved virtual participants join

Virtual attendance still requires prior approval from the court. CourtCall does not create a new right to appear remotely, and the pilot does not change the court’s authority to require an in-person appearance.

For a listed CourtCall courtroom, participants select the court’s virtual-room link, enter their name and case information, and identify their role. They can use computer audio, dial in by phone or have the CourtCall system call a direct phone number. Phone participants need the access code shown for their courtroom.

Participants first enter a waiting room. They cannot see or hear the judge or proceedings while waiting. Court staff admit participants when the court is ready. Participants enter the virtual gallery with microphones and cameras disabled and are not seen or heard until the judge calls their case.

Why Colorado is changing platforms

The Judicial Branch told state budget officials that disruptions had occurred before but increased sharply in the summer of 2024. The department described violent, racist, pornographic, vulgar and other inappropriate material entering virtual proceedings, including graphic images and racial slurs. Recent reporting by Colorado Public Radio said the branch has cited disruptions dating to 2023 that became substantially worse the following year.

The January 2025 budget request said disruptions were occurring across all 23 judicial districts and averaged approximately 50 incidents a day. The department said Webex lacked court-specific tools for identifying and managing users, controlling audio and video, assigning courtroom roles and enforcing courtroom order.

Colorado’s court system handles more than 97,000 hearings each month. About 26.5% involve a virtual component, or roughly 25,000 proceedings requiring remote access. The Judicial Branch has described a system supporting approximately 475 to 500 virtual rooms for hybrid and fully virtual courtrooms, depending on the budget document.

What the budget records show

The platform change is backed by state budget authority and requests, but the records reflect different stages of the project and do not establish that every projected dollar has been spent.

In September 2024, the Joint Budget Committee approved $200,000 in General Fund spending authority. The money was intended for research, requirements gathering and the early procurement process for a digital court solution to replace Webex, according to the Judicial Department’s January 2025 supplemental comeback request.

The Judicial Branch later requested $740,938 from the Judicial Department Information Technology Cash Fund. The request was designed to refinance the earlier $200,000 General Fund amount and provide $540,938 in cash-fund authority to begin project development.

The Joint Budget Committee staff supplemental recommendation recommended the full $740,938 request and described projected additional costs of $3,035,438 for FY 2025-26, $4,296,469 for FY 2026-27 and $4,026,750 in annual contract, licensing and operating costs for FY 2027-28, with five-percent increases in later years. The document also states that it is a staff working document and does not represent a final committee decision.

Those figures are budget requests, recommendations or projections from the FY 2024-25 supplemental process. They are not proof that all amounts were finally appropriated, spent or committed under a permanent CourtCall contract.

What remains unresolved

The pilot is testing whether a court-specific system can reduce disruptions and give court staff more control without eliminating approved remote access. It does not establish that CourtCall will become Colorado’s permanent statewide platform.

The Judicial Branch has not announced a final evaluation or a permanent change to remote-appearance rules. Some courtrooms remain on Webex, and the current Digital Court page identifies only the participating courtrooms and their transition dates.

Residents with approved virtual appearances should confirm the courtroom, platform date, joining link and phone access code before each hearing. The pilot is scheduled to continue through October 2026, with the state still evaluating reliability, security and the continuing technology costs of a court-specific system.

Sources

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