David Butler

1930 - 2023

Butler, David
June 11, 1930 - August 13, 2023
Attorney

Long-time, prominent Denver attorney, David Butler, passed away on August 13th, 2023. Raised in St. Paul, Minnesota, he graduated from Princeton and then Harvard Law School in 1957, after making Law Review. He moved to Denver and joined Holland & Hart that same year, later becoming a partner and then managing partner up until 1995. He remained Of Counsel, doing arbitration work until 2008. While at H&H, he instituted policies to increase diversity and equity for partners and employees before most other law partnerships in the state.
Although he represented many large, well-known companies and served on Columbine National and UMB bank boards, he felt strongly that everyone should have equal access to legal representation. To further that end, he served as a board member on the Colorado Access to Justice Commission (as a founder), the Colorado Lawyers Trust Account Foundation, the Colorado Center for Law and Policy, and the Legal-Aid Foundation of Colorado. He also served for eight years on the Graland Country Day School Board. Outside of his legal work, he loved to read, follow politics and international affairs, watch sports, and delve into sports statistics.
He is preceded in death by two wives, Diana Butler Thomson (married 1952-55) and Barbara Butler (married 1958 until her passing in 2014), and his sister, Alida Stange. He is survived by his sister Allison Butler (Pennsylvania), half-brother Francis Butler (California), five children: Anne (Massachusetts), Larry (Massachusetts), Molly (Colorado), Peter (Colorado), and Kate Butler (Colorado) and their spouses, six grandchildren, and three great-grandchildren. In lieu of flowers, please send donations to the Colorado Center for Law and Policy or the Legal-Aid Foundation of Colorado. An informal Celebration of Life will be held at the Park Place Annex Building, 111 N. Emerson St. on Oct. 13th at 2:00.