Trafficking in Academic Materials

C.R.S. tit. 23, art. 4

in effect

C.R.S. § 23-4-101 Legislative declaration

23-4-101. Legislative declaration. The general assembly hereby declares that the practice of trafficking in academic materials, commonly referred to as ghostwriting, serves no legitimate purpose and tends to undermine the academic process to the detriment of students, the academic community, and the public and that such practice should not be permitted to continue.

C.R.S. § 23-4-102 Definitions

23-4-102. Definitions. As used in this article 4, unless the context otherwise requires: (1) "Assignment" means any specific written, recorded, pictorial, artistic, or other academic task, including but not limited to a term paper, thesis, dissertation, essay, or report intended for submission to any institution of higher education in fulfillment of the requirements for a degree, diploma, certificate, or course of study. (2) "Entity" means a partnership, corporation, or association. (3) "Institution of higher education" means a state institution of higher education as defined in section 23-18-102 (10)(a), a local district college, an area technical college, a technical college, and any nonpublic institution of higher education as defined in section 23-3.7-102 (3). (4) "Prepare" means to put into condition for intended use. "Prepare" does not include the mere furnishing of information or research. (5) "Sale" or "sell" means any transfer, exchange, or barter, in any manner, for any consideration, or by any agreement.

C.R.S. § 23-4-103 Preparation, sale, and distribution of academic materials - advertising

23-4-103. Preparation, sale, and distribution of academic materials - advertising. (1) A person or entity shall not prepare, offer to prepare, cause to be prepared, sell, or distribute any assignment for another person for a fee or other compensation with the knowledge, or under circumstances in which he or she should reasonably have known, that such assignment is to be submitted by any other person for academic credit at any institution of higher education in this state. (1.5) A person or entity shall not prepare, sell, or offer to sell to another person a document or service that provides answers for, or completes on behalf of a student, an online exam that is administered pursuant to a course of study at any institution of higher education. (2) A person or entity shall not make or disseminate, with the intent to induce any other person to enter into any obligation relating thereto, any statement, written or oral, that he or she will prepare, cause to be prepared, sell, or distribute any assignment or answer to an online exam for a fee or other compensation for or on behalf of any person who has been assigned the written preparation of such assignment or answer to an online exam for academic credit at any institution of higher education in this state.

C.R.S. § 23-4-104 Injunctions

23-4-104. Injunctions. (1) Any court of competent jurisdiction may grant such relief as is necessary to enforce the provisions of this article, including the issuance of an injunction. (2) Actions for injunction under the provisions of this article 4 may be brought in the name of the people of the state of Colorado by the attorney general or by the district attorney for the judicial district in which the conduct to be enjoined took place or by any institution of higher education acting for the interest of itself, its students, or the general public.

C.R.S. § 23-4-104.5 Civil penalty

23-4-104.5. Civil penalty. The attorney general may bring a civil action on behalf of the state to seek the imposition of a civil penalty for any violation of this article 4. The court, upon finding a violation of this article 4, shall impose a civil penalty to be paid to the general fund of the state in an amount not to exceed seven hundred fifty dollars for each such violation.

C.R.S. § 23-4-105 Other remedies

23-4-105. Other remedies. The provisions of this article are not exclusive. Nothing in this article shall be construed to preempt or in any other way to limit, diminish, or imply the absence of rights of any party, public or private, against any person in connection with any of the acts described in section 23-4-103.

C.R.S. § 23-4-105.5 Exceptions

23-4-105.5. Exceptions. (1) It is not a violation of this article 4 if a person or entity renders for a fee: (a) Tutorial assistance if the assistance is not intended to be submitted in whole or in substantial part as an assignment or as an answer to an online exam; or (b) Service in the form of typing, transcribing, assembling, reproducing, or editing an assignment or answer to an online exam if this service is not intended to make substantive changes in the assignment or answer to an online exam. (2) This article 4 does not apply to a person who is enrolled for educational purposes.

C.R.S. § 23-4-106 Construction of article

23-4-106. Construction of article. This article shall be liberally construed in order to prevent the practices described therein.

Source: Open US Law by Vaquill AI (CC BY 4.0)URL: https://leg.colorado.gov/sites/default/files/images/olls/crs2024-title-23.docxFetched: 10/6/2026