About Charles E. Liken Jr., Esq.
Attorney & Counselor at Law — over 30 years in the legal field — since 1995 — as investigator, prosecutor, and counselor for Colorado families.
Charles E. Liken Jr., Esq. — On Colorado's Legal Front Lines Since 1995 · Government Investigator, Denver Human Services (1997–2003) · Licensed Colorado Attorney Since 2003 ~ 20+ Years in Private Practice · Colorado Deputy District Attorney (2018–2020) · Colorado Court-Appointed Child and Family Investigator
Over 30 years of knowing how cases really work
Charles didn't learn the legal system from a textbook — he learned it from the evidence up. Fresh from his B.A. in Administration of Justice at the University of Pittsburgh (1995), he began his career inside the Allegheny County District Attorney's Office in Pittsburgh — first as a paralegal in the General Trial and plea-disposition units, then promoted to investigator for the Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition (A.R.D.) diversion program, where he managed 300+ cases and coordinated restitution directly with victims — before bringing that experience west to Colorado in 1997.
Once in Colorado, he served the City & County of Denver from 1997 to 2003 as a civil and criminal fraud investigator for Denver Human Services: more than 700 independent investigations, surveillance, interviews, detailed reports for possible civil and criminal filing, and testimony in civil, criminal, and administrative-law proceedings. He earned his J.D. from the University of Denver Sturm College of Law (December 2002) — receiving the Denise Stott Award for leadership and community involvement — and was admitted to the Colorado bar in May 2003 — closing out his Denver Human Services years as Acting Senior Agency Personnel Analyst, running internal personnel investigations and advising a 1,200-employee agency.
In 2004 he opened his own firm, Charles E. Liken, LLC, in Denver — a broad civil practice spanning domestic relations, complex real-estate litigation, personal injury, contract and lien matters, and corporate and franchise work. He later served as a Deputy District Attorney in Colorado's 12th Judicial District (2018–2020), then from 2020 to 2025 rose from Senior Associate to Senior Managing Attorney at a Longmont firm before founding The Longmont Law Firm — bringing senior-level judgment and small-firm attention to the families and individuals of Boulder County and Northern Colorado.
Why experience matters
Because facts are built, not found. Most lawyers receive a file; an investigator knows how the file got made — what a clean chain of evidence looks like, which witness statements will survive cross-examination, and where the holes hide. Seven hundred investigations' worth of that instinct goes into how every LLF case is prepared.
Because you should know what the other side will do before they do it. Prosecutors decide what to charge, what to bargain, and what to take to trial. Charles has been that prosecutor. When he tells you how a DA — or an opposing counsel — will read your case, it's pattern recognition, not guesswork.
Because judgment is the expensive part. Twenty-plus years of private practice is what it takes to know which fights change outcomes and which just change invoices. Experience is the difference between a lawyer who can litigate everything and one who knows what's worth litigating.
Because life doesn't stay in one lane. Divorce collides with criminal allegations; estates collide with family conflict; a DUI lands in the middle of a custody case. With a practice spanning family law, criminal & DUI defense, estate planning, and probate, one counselor can see your whole picture.
Put over 30 years of experience on your side. Investigator, prosecutor, defense attorney, mediator — Charles has worked every side of the courtroom. Put that whole perspective to work for your family.
Your choice: no-charge 20-minute phone call OR in-depth hour ($300) — both directly with Charles.
Credentials & training
- J.D., University of Denver Sturm College of Law (2002) — Denise Stott Award for leadership & community involvement
- B.A., Administration of Justice, University of Pittsburgh (1995)
- Charles E. Liken Jr., Esq. — Colorado attorney since May 2003
- Deputy District Attorney — 12th Judicial District of Colorado (2018–2020)
- Mediator — domestic relations cases
- Child & Family Investigator (CFI) — Colorado
- Former Colorado-licensed real estate broker
How Charles works
Clients describe him as brutally honest, genuine, and dedicated — you will always know where your case stands, what it's likely to cost, and what he would do in your shoes. He listens before he advises, prepares as if every matter will see a courtroom, and negotiates from that position of strength.
Your team
Yazmin Vasquez, Senior Managing Paralegal, brings 7+ years of Colorado family-law experience as your day-to-day point of contact and the engine of the firm — she does it all: scheduling, filings, client communication — and she collaborates with Charles on every single pleading. Nothing about your case sits still on her watch. Reach her directly at yazmin@longmont.law.
Now you know us. Let's hear your case.
A no-charge 20-minute call, directly with Charles — or an in-depth hour ($300). Your call.