Office of the Presiding Disciplinary Judge

In 1999, the Colorado Supreme Court adopted a series of changes to the attorney regulation system, including the establishment of the Office of the Presiding Disciplinary Judge, pursuant to Colorado Rules of Civil Procedure ("C.R.C.P") 251.16. The Court also made extensive revisions to the rules governing the disciplinary process, repealing C.R.C.P. 241 et seq. and replacing those with C.R.C.P. 251 et seq. The Presiding Disciplinary Judge presides over attorney regulation proceedings and issues orders together with a two-member hearing board at trials and hearings. The opinions of the Presiding Disciplinary Judge and hearing board are final orders in that case and may be appealed to the Supreme Court in accordance with C.R.C.P. 251.27. Although the decisions of the Hearing Board are final orders in the case in which they are issued, they do not serve as stare decisis precedent for future cases nor constitute the law of the jurisdiction.