Rule 243.10 - Reinstatement After Transfer to Disability Inactive Status(a) Overview and Eligibility. The Presiding Disciplinary Judge considers petitions for reinstatement from disability inactive status under the standards set forth in subsection (b) below. If the lawyer has remained on disability inactive status for five years or longer, the lawyer must have satisfied the supreme court's bar examination and MPRE requirements within the eighteen months preceding the filing of the petition. But if a lawyer petitions for reinstatement within five years of the effective date of the lawyer's transfer to disability inactive status, the five-year period addressed in this subsection stops running until a final order is issued and any appeals have been decided.(b) Procedure and Standards. (1) Disability Cases Arising in Colorado. (A) Standards. Unless a lawyer was transferred to disability inactive status based on reciprocal disability, a lawyer may be reinstated if the lawyer demonstrates by clear and convincing evidence that the lawyer is competent to resume the practice of law and meets the following eligibility requirements, as may be applicable to the facts of the matter, for the practice of law: (i) Honesty and candor with clients, lawyers, courts, regulatory authorities, and others;(ii) The ability to reason logically, recall complex factual information, and accurately analyze legal problems;(iii) The ability to use a high degree of organization and clarity in communicating with clients, lawyers, judicial officers, and others;(iv) The ability to use good judgment on behalf of clients and in conducting professional business;(v) The ability to act with respect for and in accordance with the law;(vi) The ability to exhibit regard for the rights and welfare of others;(vii) The ability to comply with the Colorado Rules of Professional Conduct; state, local, and federal laws; regulations, statutes, and rules; and orders of a tribunal;(viii) The ability to act diligently and reliably in fulfilling obligations to clients, lawyers, courts, and others;(ix) The ability to be honest and use good judgment in personal financial dealings and on behalf of clients and others; and(x) The ability to comply with deadlines and time constraints.(B) Petition by Lawyer. (i) A lawyer seeking reinstatement from disability inactive status must file a properly verified petition with the Presiding Disciplinary Judge and provide a copy to the Regulation Counsel. Within 14 days of receiving the petition, the Regulation Counsel must file a response indicating whether the Regulation Counsel objects to reinstatement, intends to stipulate to reinstatement, or believes further investigation is needed.(ii) After receiving a petition and response, the Presiding Disciplinary Judge may order the lawyer to undergo an independent medical examination by a qualified examiner designated by the Presiding Disciplinary Judge.(iii) The Presiding Disciplinary Judge has discretion to order reinstatement proceedings procedurally analogous to those set forth in C.R.C.P. 242.39. But the Presiding Disciplinary Judge considers reinstatement petitions from disability inactive status without a Hearing Board.(iv) After considering the relevant information and holding any hearing, the Presiding Disciplinary Judge may grant or deny reinstatement.(C) Stipulation to Reinstatement. Either before or after the filing of a petition, the parties may file a stipulated agreement that the lawyer should be reinstated from disability inactive status. After considering the relevant information and holding any hearing, the Presiding Disciplinary Judge may approve or reject the stipulation.(2) Reciprocal Disability. (A) Summary Reinstatement Premised on Reinstatement in Originating Jurisdiction. If a lawyer was transferred to disability inactive status under C.R.C.P. 243.6(a)(2) and has since been reinstated to practice law in the jurisdiction in which the reciprocal disability proceeding originated, the lawyer may file a petition seeking reinstatement, accompanied by a certified copy of the order reinstating the lawyer in the originating jurisdiction. Provided that the lawyer has not remained on disability inactive status under this rule for more than five years, the Presiding Disciplinary Judge may summarily reinstate the lawyer.(B) No Reinstatement in Originating Jurisdiction. If a lawyer's petition demonstrates that good cause exists for not seeking reinstatement in the originating jurisdiction, the Presiding Disciplinary Judge may allow a lawyer subject to reciprocal disability to seek reinstatement in Colorado under subsection (b)(1) above without having been reinstated in the originating jurisdiction. A lawyer seeking reinstatement under this provision must attach to the petition for reinstatement a complete record of the disability proceeding in the originating jurisdiction and must certify in the petition that the lawyer was not subject in the originating jurisdiction to any disciplinary proceedings, including a disciplinary investigation, at the time the lawyer was transferred to disability inactive status.(c) Disability Reinstatement Hearings. Disability reinstatement hearings are conducted by the Presiding Disciplinary Judge, sitting without a Hearing Board, except as provided in subsection (d) below. The clerk of the Presiding Disciplinary Judge may issue subpoenas under C.R.C.P. 45. Except as otherwise provided in this rule, reinstatement proceedings must be conducted in accordance with the Colorado Rules of Civil Procedure and civil trial practice in this state. The Presiding Disciplinary Judge may receive any evidence with probative value regardless of its admissibility under the rules of evidence if the lawyer has a fair opportunity to rebut hearsay evidence.(d) Consolidated Disability and Disciplinary Reinstatement Proceedings. If a lawyer concurrently petitions for reinstatement from disability inactive status and reinstatement or readmission in a disciplinary case, the Presiding Disciplinary Judge may, if the lawyer consents, consolidate the proceedings. If so, a Hearing Board will consider both petitions together under C.R.C.P. 242.39, and the consolidated proceedings will be public.(e) Costs. Unless the Presiding Disciplinary Judge orders otherwise, a lawyer may not file a petition for reinstatement under this section 243.10 until the lawyer has paid the costs incurred in the underlying disability proceeding, including the cost of any examinations ordered.(f) Waiver of Privilege. For purposes of this rule, when a lawyer petitions for reinstatement from disability inactive status, the lawyer thereby waives the physician-patient and psychologist-client privileges under C.R.S. section 13-90-107(d) and (g) between the lawyer and any professional who has examined or treated the lawyer in connection with the disability. The Presiding Disciplinary Judge may order the lawyer to identify professionals who have examined or treated the lawyer in connection with the disability. The Presiding Disciplinary Judge may also order the lawyer to provide written consent for those professionals to disclose information and records pertaining to the lawyer's examination or treatment.(g) Confidentiality. An order reinstating a lawyer from disability inactive status is available to the public. Otherwise, disability reinstatement proceedings, files, and records are confidential and are not available to the public, except by order of the supreme court or the Presiding Disciplinary Judge. All entities described in this rule and all individuals working or volunteering on behalf of those entities have an ongoing duty to maintain the confidentiality mandated by this rule. But the Regulation Counsel may disclose any information reasonably necessary either to correct false or misleading public statements made during a disability reinstatement proceeding or to defend against litigation in which the Regulation Counsel is a named defendant. A lawyer may release information arising from the lawyer's own disability reinstatement proceeding or authorize the Regulation Counsel to release such information, unless the information is made confidential by rule or order.Adopted by the Court, En Banc, May 20, 2021, effective 7/1/2021.