Elie Zwiebel, Esq.

Attorneys

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Elie Zwiebel, Esq.

Prior to attending law school, Elie Zwiebel taught a variety of subjects and a diversity of students in the Detroit Area, Chicago, Portland, Shenzhen, and Nanjing. Through these experiences, Elie developed a passion for student and family advocacy. During law school, Elie engaged in  experiential learning opportunities as often as possible: with movement and power-building nonprofit organizations, where he learned the importance of holistic and interdisciplinary approaches to legal advocacy; with the United States Department of Education Office for Civil Rights, where he gained experience and familiarity with special education law; and with the United States Department of Justice Civil Rights Division, where he contributed to investigating police departments, prisons, and mental health facilities for patterns and practices of discrimination. While in the University of Denver Civil Rights Clinic, Elie successfully petitioned President Obama to grant clemency to two individuals serving life sentences for nonviolent drug offenses. After spending one year as a Judicial Law Clerk for Judge Norma A. Sierra in the 20th Judicial District, Elie is thrilled to now zealously represent students and their families in Colorado schools and courts. Elie has represented students, parents, and guardians in educational and youth justice matters through his solo practice since September 2017 and now works as Transformative Justice Project of Colorado’s Executive Director.

Bar Admission

  • Colorado, 2016 - Present

  • United States District Court of Colorado, 2017 - Present

  • United States Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals, 2019 - Present

Education

  • University of Denver Sturm College of Law

    • Juris Doctor: May 2016

  • University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI

    • Bachelor of Arts: 2005

    • Major: English

    • Minor: Global Media Studies

Awards

  • Standing Up for Justice (Office of the Child Representative, 2023)

  • Colorado Bar Fellow (Colorado Bar Foundation, 2023-Present)

Involvement

  • Transformative Justice Project of Colorado

    • Executive Director, 2023-Present

    • Education First Program Director, 2018-Present

  • University of Denver Sturm College of Law Adjunct Faculty, 2021-Present

  • Colorado Department of Education Dispute Resolution Advisory Board Member, 2023-Present

  • SB23-29 Disproportionate School Discipline Task Force Co-Chair 2023-2024

  • HB22-1131 Preadolescent Task Force Member, 2023

  • Homeless Advocacy Policy Project, University of Denver Sturm College of Law

    • Professor, 2021, 2023

    • Barton Institute Teaching and Research Fellow, 2018

  • Learn Your Rights in Colorado (LYRIC)

    • Board Treasurer, 2019-Present

    • Volunteer Teacher, 2017-Present

  • Colorado Criminal Defense Institute

    • Board Member, 2020-Present

  • Colorado Bar Association

    • Civil Right Section Vice Chair and Legislative Liaison, 2021-2023

    • Juvenile Law Section Council Member at Large, Vice Chair, Chair, and Board of Governors Liaison, 2021-Present

  • AUL Denver

    • Board Member, 2020-2023

  • Words Beyond Bars

    • Vice President of the Board of Directors, 2017-2019

  • Southern Poverty Law Center

    • Contract Mississippi Legislative Analyst, 2018

  • CLE Presentations

    • Break the Pipeline: Your Client’s Educational Rights and How to Promote Better Outcomes When Dealing with System Involvement (Office of the Child Rep. Conference, September 2024)

    • Special Ed in The System (Office of the State Public Defender Conference, 2024)

    • “Administrative Unit Responsibilities for FAPE in County Jails: Special Education Director Training” (Colo. Dep’t of Ed., 2023)

    • “Administrative Unit Responsibilities for FAPE in County Jails: County Jail Officials Training” (Colo. Dep’t of Ed., 2023)

    • “School Expulsion Pro Bono Project – Three Part Training” (Colo. Lawyers Cmte., Jan. and Sept. 2023)

    • “School Discipline” Pueblo Bar Association (Nov. 2021)

    • “Educational Rights: Collateral Considerations for Your Client’s Defense,” 9th Annual Excellence in Juvenile Defense Conference (Colorado Juvenile Defender Center, Office of the Alternate Defense Counsel, Office of the Child’s Representative)

    • “Break the Pipeline,” 2020 Coalition of Juvenile Justice National Conference

    • “Educational Advocacy,” 2020 Office of the Child’s Representative Annual Conference

    • “Breaking the Pipeline: Integrating Educational Advocacy into Defense Strategies” 8th Annual Excellence in Juvenile Defense Conference (Colorado Juvenile Defender Center, Office of the Alternate Defense Counsel, Office of the Child’s Representative)

    • “Education Law and Best Interests” 2019 Office of the Child’s Representative Annual Conference

    • “Education Issues and School Engagement,” 7th Annual Excellence in Juvenile Defense Conference (Colorado Juvenile Defender Center, Office of the Alternate Defense Counsel, Office of the Child’s Representative)

    • “Laws Impacting Students,” No Client Left Behind (Office of the Alternate Defense Counsel)

    • "Educational Advocacy," 6th Annual Excellence in Juvenile Defense Conference (Colorado Juvenile Defender Center, Office of the Alternate Defense Counsel, Office of the Child's Representative)

  • Publications and In the Media

    • “Suspensions in Colorado Schools Jump 25% as Districts Struggle to Staff Since Pandemic” (Jessica Seaman, The Denver Post, Sept. 16, 2024)

    • “Starting Next Year, Youth Will Get Representation in Denver Courts” (Rebecca Tauber, Denverite, Dec. 18, 2023)

    • “East High Shooting Spotlights Tenuous Balance Between School Safety, ‘Moral Obligation’ to Educate Kids” The Denver Post (Jessica Seaman & Elizabeth Hernandez)

    • “New Bill Helps Families Sued by Schools to Pay for Legal Services” NewsBreak Denver (Suzie Glassman)

    • “Defending the Whole Child: Education Advocacy as an Integral Part of Holistic Juvenile Defense” Seattle Journal for Social Justice, (2022)

    • “Alternative High Schools Work to Keep Students Out of Justice System” CBS Denver (Karen Morfitt)

    • “Gettin’ Legal With It: Episode 22” Colorado Bar Association (May 2021)

    • “Shifting Gears: Moving Colorado Away from Criminalizing Vehicle Residency and Towards Safe Parking” (May 2021)

    • “For Incarcerated Youth, the Pandemic Isn’t Over Yet” The Colorado Trust (Daliah Singer)

    • “Colorado School Discipline Law: Gaps and Goals,” Denver Law Review (2020)

    • “Thousands of Families in Special-Education Limbo,” Washington Post (Caroline Preston)

    • “A Shot in the Dark,” Law Week (Jessica Folker)

    • “Using Poetry to Build Bridges,” San Quentin News (Marcus Henderson)

    • “Too High a Price 2: Move on to Where?” (May 2018)

    • “Yes in My Backyard: Building ADUs to Address Homelessness” (May 2018)

    • “Too High a Price: What Criminalizing Homelessness Costs Colorado” (May 2016)

Before starting law school, Lynnie obtained her undergraduate degree at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City. While there, she briefly worked as a teaching assistant in a kindergarten classroom. In this role, she became passionate about working with students and expanding learning opportunities for her students. After college, Lynnie worked in public relations and content marketing for a recruitment technology company. In this role, Lynnie led the organization’s internal COVID-19 content team, and created the company’s diversity, equity, and inclusion content plan, drafting over twenty internal communications plans for events and holidays like Pride Month, Black History Month, and Juneteenth. After two years of marketing, Lynnie realized she felt most passionate about working in youth advocacy, and decided to leave marketing and PR and go to law school. While in school at the University of Denver, Lynnie participated in a variety of externships related to youth and student justice. In the summer after her first year of law school, Lynnie externed with Disability Law Colorado, where she became familiar with disability and special education law, engaging directly with students and parents impacted by disability discrimination. During her second year, Lynnie worked as a student attorney in the Community Economic Development Clinic, in which she managed the case loads of two transactional clients in need of low-cost legal services. She also worked as a teaching assistant in the Lawyering Process program, teaching first-year law students research and citation skills and grading their writing and research projects. In the same year, she co-authored an article that is now set for publication in the Charleston Law Review in spring 2025. This thought leadership piece discusses the connection between civics education in public schools and participation in elections and democracy. After her 2L year, Lynnie worked in family law, primarily with victims of domestic violence, honing her advocacy skills and experience in client work. Finally, in the fall of her third year of law school, Lynnie accepted an externship with Elie Zwiebel Law, where she first encountered educational and youth justice law. In the months she worked with Elie, Lynnie discovered her true passion—working to stop the school to prison pipeline and secure educational opportunities for Colorado students. After graduating, she began working for Elie Zwiebel as an associate.

Education

  • University of Denver Sturm College of Law

    • Juris Doctor: May 2024

  • University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT

    • Bachelor of Arts: 2019

    • Major: Strategic Communication

Awards

  • Constitutional Rights and Remedies Certificate, University of Denver 2024

  • Public Good Distinction, University of Denver 2024

  • Beehive Honor Society, University of Utah 2019

Involvement

  • Volunteer and advocate for the Children’s Diabetes Foundation (2012-present)

Publications

  • “Civics Education: The Unsung Guardian of Democracy” (Charleston Law Review, 2025)