James Cordes, JD
Counties served: Denver, Arapahoe, Douglas, Boulder, Jefferson, Adams, Broomfield, Summit, Pitkin
Attorney, Mediator, arbitrator
Kinnett & Cordes
600 Grant St., Suite 404
Denver, CO 80203
720-864-1303
About ME
James M. Cordes is a family law attorney and Partner at Kinnett & Cordes. Practicing family law exclusively since 2011, he has over 15 years of experience representing clients in complex family law matters, including high-asset, complex financial cases and parenting disputes involving mental health and substance use concerns.
James has successfully litigated family law matters at both the trial court and appellate level and continues to help clients achieve their goals in the courtroom. In 2020, he expanded his practice to include Collaborative Divorce and Cooperative Law, which focuses on meeting client’s goals and needs while resolving family law disputes in a respectful manner, instead of the winner-take-all and at-all-costs approach that is all too common in Colorado courts. Within Collaborative Law, James focuses on shepherding clients to find creative resolutions for their unique financial and parenting issues.
James earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Colorado Boulder in 2006 and his Juris Doctor from the University of Denver Sturm College of Law in 2010. He serves as Managing Editor of the Colorado Bar Association’s C.R.S. on Family Law (2024, 2025), the authoritative handbook for family law attorneys in court. James has been recognized by Colorado Super Lawyers as a Rising Star from 2017 through 2024 and as a Super Lawyer from 2025 through the present. He also holds a “Superb” rating from Avvo and has contributed legal articles to Colorado Bar Association’s The Colorado Lawyer, Denver Bar Association’s The Docket, and Law Week Colorado.
EDUCATION
B.A., University of Colorado, Boulder, 2006
J.D., University of Denver Sturm College of Law, 2010
PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS
Colorado Collaborative Divorce Professionals, Past President and Board Member, 2021-Present
Family Law Section Executive Council, Colorado Bar Association, 2025-Present
Metro Denver Interdisciplinary Committee, Past President and Board Member, 2020-Present
CBA Family Law Section, Young Lawyers, Committee Member, 2016
Colorado Bar Association, Family Law Section
Denver Bar Association
COLLABORATIVE TRAININGS Taken
Introduction to Collaborative Practice, 2020
Advanced Collaborative Training, 2022
Advanced Collaborative Training: Settlement Strategies for Families with Mental Health and High Conflict Challenges, 2023
Colorado Collaborative Law Divorce Training: Motivational Interviewing, October 2026
Presentations Given
Publications
Managing Editor, C.R.S. on Family Law, 2026 Edition, CBA-CLE (CLE in Colorado, Inc.)
Managing Editor, C.R.S. on Family Law, 2025 Edition, CBA-CLE (CLE in Colorado, Inc.)
Divorce, Privacy, and Collaborative Law, Denver Bar Association’s The Docket (October 2025)
Collaborative Law 101 with James Cordes, Denver Bar Association (October 2025) (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6oTjqdnu--o)
Six Strategies for Successful ADR in Family Law, Law Week Colorado (August 2019)
Retroactive Child Support: Conflicting Decisions and Practical Advice, 41 Colo. Lawyer 91 (2012)
Presentations
Presenter, Collaborative Law and Alternative Dispute Resolution: Exploring Settlement Options Outside of Litigation, Metro Denver Interdisciplinary Committee, 2026
Moderator, Views from Collaborative Practitioners, Colorado Collaborative Divorce Professionals, May 2026
Presenter, Collaborative Team Approach, CCDP Intro to Collaborative Training, December 2025
Moderator, 2025 MDIC Judicial Officers Panel, Metro Denver Interdisciplinary Committee, 2025
Presenter, Collaborative Ethics for Lawyers, CCDP Intro to Collaborative Training, November 2024
Presenter, The Art of Collaboration: Real-Life Examples of Resolution Through Collaborative Law, Family Law Institute, 2024
Presenter, PC/DM Appointments – Views and Strategies from the Professionals, Metro Denver Interdisciplinary Committee, 2024
Presenter, Screening Collaborative Law Cases, CCDP Intro to Collaborative Training, February 2024
Moderator, 2024 MDIC Judicial Officers Panel, Metro Denver Interdisciplinary Committee, 2024
Presenter, Collaborative Law and Other Cooperative Paradigms: Expansive Solutions, CBA Family Law Section, 2023
Presenter/Moderator, HB 1178 Q&A with Jaime Watman, JD, Metro Denver IDC, September 2023
Presenter, Screening Collaborative Law Cases, CBA/CLE Level 1 Collaborative Training, December 2022
Presenter, Screening Collaborative Law Cases, CBA/CLE Level 1 Collaborative Training, June 2022
Panelist, The Ethics of Hybrid Models: Creative Ways to Settle Cases and Alternatives to Traditional Evaluations, Metro Denver Interdisciplinary Committee, May 2022
Moderator, Collaborative Law Intakes, Colorado Collaborative Divorce Professionals, April 2022
Panelist, The Higher the Conflict, the Higher the Stakes – Practical Tools and Methods to Manage High Conflict Cases and Clients, CBA/CLE, March 2022
Presenter, Enforcement Measures in Family Law: Contempt is Not Always the Best Answer, CBA/CLE, 2020, September 2020
Presenter, Family Law Basic Skills CLE | Protection Orders in Family Law: Grounds, Procedure and Practical Advice, February 2020
Presenter, Annual Family Law Institute | Attorney’s Fees, Liens, and Malpractice: Strategies and Ethical Considerations, August 2017
Presenter, Annual Family Law Institute | Child Support Essentials, August 2012