(2) Whenever a justice or judge of any court of this state has been convicted in any court of this state or of the United States or of any state, of a felony or other offense involving moral turpitude, the supreme court shall, of its own motion or upon petition filed by any person, and upon finding that such a conviction was had, enter its order suspending said justice or judge from office until such time as said judgment of conviction becomes final, and the payment of salary of said justice or judge shall also be suspended from the date of such order. If said judgment of conviction becomes final, the supreme court shall enter its order removing said justice or judge from office and declaring his office vacant and his right to salary shall cease from the date of the order of suspension. If said judgment of conviction is reversed with directions to enter a judgment of acquittal or if reversed for a new trial which subsequently results in a judgment of dismissal or acquittal, the supreme court shall enter its order terminating the suspension of said justice or judge and said justice or judge shall be entitled to his salary for the period of suspension. A plea of guilty or nolo contendere to such a charge shall be equivalent to a final conviction for the purpose of this section.
(3)
(b) Each member shall be appointed to a four-year term; except that onehalf of the initial membership in each category shall be appointed to twoyear terms, for the purpose of staggering terms. Whenever a commission membership prematurely terminates or a member no longer possesses the specific qualifications for the category from which he was selected, his position shall be deemed vacant, and his successor shall be appointed in the same manner as the original appointment for the remainder of his term. A member shall be deemed to have resigned if that member is absent from three consecutive commission meetings without the commission having entered an approval for additional absences upon its minutes. If any member of the commission is disqualified to act in any matter pending before the commission, the commission may appoint a special member to sit on the commission solely for the purpose of deciding that matter.
(c) No member of the commission shall receive any compensation for his services but shall be allowed his necessary expenses for travel, board, and lodging and any other expenses incurred in the performance of his duties, to be paid by the supreme court from its budget to be appropriated by the general assembly.
(c.5)
(II) Upon order of a formal hearing pursuant to subsection (3)(e) of this section, a panel of the adjudicative board shall convene to conduct the hearing. A panel consists of one judge, one attorney licensed to practice law in Colorado, and one citizen. The state court administrator, or the administrator's designee, shall randomly select the panel from among the adjudicative board's membership. The random selection of a panel is a purely administrative function.
(e)
(II) After a formal hearing the adjudicative panel may dismiss the charges before it; take informal remedial action, or order the removal, retirement, suspension, censure, reprimand, or other discipline, as the case may be, of the justice or judge. The adjudicative panel may also order that the costs of the investigation and hearing be assessed against such justice or judge. The justice or judge may appeal an adjudicative panel's disciplinary order, and the commission may appeal an adjudicative panel's dismissal or disciplinary order, to the Supreme Court, or, when the circumstances described in subsection (3)(f)(II) are present, to the tribunal described in subsection (3)(f)(II) of this section. The respondent justice or judge may appeal the commission's order for the informal remedial action to a panel of the adjudicative board. The adjudicative panel shall review the commission's informal remedial action order for abuse of discretion. An appeal of an informal remedial action order is confidential consistent with subsection (3)(g) of this section.
(II) In proceedings in which the circumstances described in this subsection (3)(f)(II) are present, a tribunal comprised of seven judges of the court of appeals and district court shall review the decision of the adjudicative panel or hear any other appeal in the same manner and use the same standards of review as the supreme court when it reviews decisions and hears appeals as described in subsection (3)(f)(I) of this section. The state court administrator, or the administrator's designee, shall randomly select members of the tribunal from among all district judges and court of appeals judges who do not have a current disciplinary investigation or proceeding pending before the commission or adjudicative board; have not received a disciplinary sanction from the commission, adjudicative board, or supreme court; and are not other wise required by law, court rule, or judicial canon to recuse themselves from the tribunal. A tribunal must not include more than one member who is a court of appeals judge and not more than one district judge from any one judicial district. The random selection of tribunal members is a purely administrative function. The tribunal shall review decisions and hear any other appeals in the following circumstances:
(B) When a Colorado Supreme Court Justice is a complainant Or a material witness in the proceeding;
(C) When a staff member to a Colorado Supreme Court Justice is a complainant or material witness in the proceeding;
(D) When a family member of a Colorado Supreme Court Justice is a complainant or material witness in the proceeding; or
(E) When any other circumstances exist due to which more than two Colorado Supreme Court Justices have recused themselves from the proceeding.
(IV) Upon an order for retirement, the justice or judge is tetired with the same rights and privileges as if the justice or judge retired pursuant to statute. Upon an order for removal, the justice or judge is removed from office and the justice's or judge's salary ceases from the date of the order. On the entry of an order for retirement or for removal of a justice or judge, the justice's or judge's office is deemed vacant.
(II) Notwithstanding the confidentiality requirement described in this subsection (3)(g), the commission may:
(B) Release information about a complaint that resulted in informal remedial action or public discipline of a judge or justice to the state court administrator as necessary for the selection of a tribunal pursuant to subsection (3)f)(li) of this section; any relevant commission on judicial performance or judicial nominating commission, the office of attorney regulation counsel, and the office of the presiding disciplinary judge, or successors to each commission or office; the office of the governor, for the purpose of judicial appointments; the judicial department, for the purpose of reviewing applicants for the senior judge program and appointments to the adjudicative board pursuant to subsection (3)(c.5)(1) of this section; and other limited recipients consistent with the purposes of this section allowed by rule; and
(C) Make publicly available aggregate information about trends or patterns in complaints made to the commission, but the commission shall not make public any information that identifies any specific person or complaint.
(IV) the general assembly may provide by law for confidential reporting and complainant rights consistent with subsection (3)(g)(il) of this section.
(i) Nothing contained in this subsection (3) shall be construed to have any effect on article XIII of this constitution.
(j) Repealed.
(k)
(II) The rule-making committee may promulgate specific rules governing proceedings before a panel of the adjudicative board. the Colorado rules of evidence and colorado rules of civil procedure, as amended, apply to proceedings before a panel of the adjudicative board until and unless the rule-making committee promulgates rules governing panel proceedings. rules promulgated pursuant to this subsection (3)(k)(il) apply to formal proceedings initiated on or after April 1, 2025.
