People v. Douglas Cannon Fogler. 25PDJ10. February 14, 2025.
The Presiding Disciplinary Judge approved the parties’ stipulation to discipline and suspended Douglas Cannon Fogler (attorney registration number 45669) from the practice of law for six months, all to be stayed pending his successful completion of a two year-period of probation, with conditions. Fogler’s probation takes effect March 21, 2025.
Fogler worked at a private law firm in 2023; that firm paid his attorney registration dues for 2023. He left that firm around June 2023. Fogler did not work between June 2023 and February 2024. During that period, Fogler neglected to pay his 2024 attorney registration dues. Consequently, he was placed on administrative suspension.
From February 2024 to August 2024, Fogler worked as an associate lawyer at a two-person law firm in Denver. On June 12, 2024, Fogler’s spouse had a court appearance for a traffic ticket. Fogler entered his appearance and stated that he was the defendant’s lawyer and spouse. The judge then asked about Fogler’s suspension. Fogler responded that he was not sure about the suspension and that he had to look into it.
Though Fogler was aware of his obligation to pay his attorney registration dues, he denies knowing of his suspension before the court informed him of it on June 12, 2024. In the weeks that followed, Fogler paid his attorney registration dues and was reinstated on July 9, 2024. In June and July 2024, however, Fogler continued working on approximately a dozen other client matters, including after June 12, 2024, and before he was reinstated on July 9, 2024. Although Fogler did not appear in court with any of these clients, he maintained an attorney-client relationship and performed legal work for them. He did not tell his clients or the lawyer he worked with about his suspension, even after June 12, 2024.
Through this conduct, Fogler violated Colo. RPC 3.4(c) (a lawyer must not knowingly disobey an obligation under the rules of a tribunal); Colo. RPC 5.5(a)(2) (a lawyer must not practice law where doing so violates regulations of the legal profession); and Colo. RPC 8.4(c) (providing that it is professional misconduct for a lawyer to engage in conduct involving dishonesty, fraud, deceit, or misrepresentation).
The case file is public per C.R.C.P. 242.41(a).