Cara Thornton is a skilled lawyer with a practice focused on complex commercial litigation including intellectual property, business torts, cannabis law, real estate, and other business related disputes. Cara also serves as outside general counsel for corporate clients, advising on a litany of issues including contract and employment-related matters, formation and dissolution, and risk management. 

From 2006 to 2009, Cara was an Assistant Attorney General of Yap State, the Federated States of Micronesia where she advised the Governor on legislative and policy issues and handled the State’s civil litigation.  Both before and after working in Yap, Cara practiced with a boutique litigation and transactional firm in downtown Denver for more than a decade.

Practice Areas

• Business and Commercial Litigation

• Intellectual Property and Trademark Litigation

• Cannabis Litigation

• Real Estate Litigation

• White Collar Criminal Defense

• Employment and Labor Law

• General Corporate Advisement

Bar Admissions

• Colorado 

• U.S. District Court, District of Colorado 

• U.S. Court of Appeals, Tenth Circuit

• Federated States of Micronesia 

• Yap State, FSM

Education

• Juris Doctor, University of Tennessee College of Law – 2002

• Bachelor of Arts, Political Science, Hollins University – 1999

Professional Affiliations

• Colorado Bar Association, Executive Council, Litigation Section

• Colorado Women’s Bar Association

• American Bar Association

• Board of Directors, Colorado Lawyers Committee

Community Activities & Personal Interests

Outside of the office, Cara enjoys traveling, exploring nature, cooking and spending time with her husband and two children.

Representative Cases and Transactions

• Obtained permanent injunction and favorable economic settlement on behalf of international corporation in prosecution of trademark infringement, including the sale of counterfeit goods, under the Lanham Act.

• Successful defense on motions of CEO of publicly traded medical manufacturer of medical imaging equipment against federal securities class action lawsuit by shareholders.

• Successful defense on motions of high ranking government officials against allegations of fraud in the awarding of government contracts.

• Analyzed and advised with respect to restructuring of more than twenty closely held real estate holding companies for succession planning.

• Drafted and implemented the first wage reform legislation in more than thirty years, as well as legislation establishing Yap State’s first marine conservation park.

Publications

• Author, “How to Customize Cannabis Lease Agreements and Stay Protected” – MG Magazine, January 2022

• Quoted, “An Ironclad Lease Can Help Marijuana Companies Avoid Eviction in State-Legal Markets” – MJBiz, Nov. 2021