Section 8-43-301 - Petitions to review(1) Any order, corrected order, or supplemental order is final unless a petition to review or appeal has been filed in accordance with this article.(2)(a)(I) If a party is dissatisfied with an order that determines compensability of a claim or liability of any party, that requires any party to pay a penalty or benefits, or that denies a claimant any benefit or penalty, the party may file a petition to review the order. If the order was entered by the director, the party must file the petition with the division. If the order was entered by an administrative law judge, the party must file the petition at the Denver office of the office of administrative courts in the department of personnel. The party must serve the petition to review by regular or electronic mail on all the parties.(II) The party must file the petition to review within twenty days after the date of the certificate of mailing of the order, and, unless timely filed, the order is final.(b) A dissatisfied party may file the petition to review by regular or electronic mail, and the petition is deemed filed upon the date of mailing, as determined by the certificate of mailing, if the certificate of mailing indicates that the petition to review was mailed to the division or to the Denver office of the office of administrative courts in the department of personnel, as appropriate. The petition to review must be in writing and must set forth in detail the particular errors and objections of the petitioner. A petitioner must, at the time of filing the petition, order any transcript relied upon for the petition to review, arrange with the hearing reporter to pay for the transcript, and notify opposing parties of the transcript ordered. Opposing parties must order any other transcript not ordered by the petitioner and arrange with the hearing reporter to pay for the other transcript within twenty days after the date of the certificate of mailing of the petition to review the order.(3) If transcripts of hearings are ordered as part of the record in a petition to review, the director or administrative law judge cannot rule on the petition until the transcripts are lodged with the division.(4) When the record upon which a petition to review has been filed is complete, the parties shall be notified in writing. The petitioner shall have twenty days after the date of the certificate of mailing of the notice to file a brief in support of the petition. The opposing parties shall have twenty days after the date of the certificate of mailing of the petitioner's brief to file briefs in opposition thereto. After the briefs are filed or the time for filing has run, the director or administrative law judge shall have thirty days to enter a supplemental order or transmit the file to the industrial claim appeals office for review.(5) In ruling on a petition to review, the director or administrative law judge may issue a supplemental order labeled as such limited to the matters raised in the petition to review, and, as to those matters, the director or administrative law judge may amend or alter the original order or set the matter for further hearing. In any event, if it has not already been done, the administrative law judge or director, following a petition to review an order, shall make findings of fact and conclusions of law necessary to support such order.(6) A party dissatisfied with a supplemental order may file a petition for review by the panel. The petition shall be filed with the division if the supplemental order was issued by the director or at the Denver office of the office of administrative courts in the department of personnel if the supplemental order was issued by an administrative law judge. The petition shall be filed within twenty days after the date of the certificate of mailing of the supplemental order. The petition shall be in writing, shall set forth in detail the particular errors and objections relied upon, and shall be accompanied by a brief in support thereof. The petition and brief shall be mailed by petitioner to all other parties at the time the petition is filed. All parties, except the petitioner, shall be deemed opposing parties and shall have twenty days after the date of the certificate of mailing of the petition and brief to file with the division or the Denver office of the office of administrative courts, as appropriate, briefs in opposition to the petition.(7) When any petition for review by the panel is filed, the division or the Denver office of the office of administrative courts shall, when all briefs are submitted to the division or the Denver office of the office of administrative courts or within fifteen days after the date briefs were due, certify and transmit the record to the industrial claim appeals office along with the petitions and briefs. The division or the Denver office of the office of administrative courts, as appropriate, shall simultaneously send notice to the parties including the date that the record has been transmitted to the industrial claim appeals office.(8) The industrial claim appeals office shall have sixty days after receipt of the certified record to enter its order. The panel may issue a summary order affirming the order of the administrative law judge or director. The panel may correct, set aside, or remand any order but only upon the following grounds: That the findings of fact are not sufficient to permit appellate review; that conflicts in the evidence are not resolved in the record; that the findings of fact are not supported by the evidence; that the findings of fact do not support the order; or that the award or denial of benefits is not supported by applicable law. If the findings of fact entered by the director or administrative law judge are supported by substantial evidence, they shall not be altered by the panel.(9) The panel shall have the power to issue such procedural orders as may be necessary to carry out its appellate review under subsection (7) of this section, including but not limited to, orders concerning completion of the record and filing of briefs. In those cases where the parties file a stipulated motion requesting that consideration of the appeal be deferred pending ongoing settlement negotiations, the panel may extend the time for entry of its order up to a maximum of thirty days.(10) The panel's order must be mailed to all parties of record. Any party dissatisfied with the panel's order has twenty-one days after the date of the certificate of mailing of such order to commence an action for judicial review in the court of appeals.(11) If the panel has failed to enter its order within sixty days of the receipt of the certified record, the order of the director or administrative law judge is deemed the order of the panel and final unless, within thirty-five days after the end of the sixty-day period, the petitioner commences an action for judicial review in the court of appeals. If the panel has not acted on the sixtieth day, the industrial claim appeals office shall send a written notice to all parties stating that the parties have thirty-five days after the date of the certificate of mailing of the notice to commence such an action.(12) If a petition to review is filed, a hearing may be held and orders entered on any other issue in the case during the pendency of the petition to review. If the order which is under petition to review concerns compensability, orders entered on these later issues are final and appealable when entered, but not enforceable until the review of the order on compensability is completed.(13) If the order which is under petition to review does not concern compensability, but concerns the respective liability of two or more employers or insurance carriers, and the injury or illness was found compensable in a hearing held pursuant to section 8-43-215, the employer or insurance carrier found liable by the director or administrative law judge shall pay benefits in accordance with the order under review until the review process is completed, at which time it shall be reimbursed by the other employer or carrier if reimbursement is necessary to comply with the final order.(14) The signature of an attorney on a petition to review or brief in support thereof constitutes a certificate by the attorney that such attorney has read the petition or brief; that, to the best of the attorney's knowledge, information, or belief formed after reasonable inquiry, it is well grounded in fact and is warranted by existing law or a good faith argument for the extension, modification, or reversal of existing law, and that it is not interposed for any improper purpose, such as to harass, cause delay, or unnecessarily increase the cost of litigation. If a petition or brief is signed in violation of this subsection (14), the director, the administrative law judge, or the panel shall award reasonable attorney fees and costs to the party incurring the fees and costs as a result of the improper actions.Amended by 2021 Ch. 384, § 10, eff. 9/7/2021.L. 90: Entire article R&RE, p. 507, § 1, effective July 1. L. 91: (10) and (11) amended and (14) added, p. 1322, § 33, effective July 1. L. 92: (2) amended, p. 1803, § 1, effective April 16. L. 94: (14) amended, p. 1878, § 10, effective June 1. L. 95: (10) and (11) amended, p. 234, § 2, effective April 17. L. 2009: (2), (6), and (7) amended, (SB 09 -070), ch. 176, p. 176, § 3, effective August 5. L. 2010: (6) and (7) amended, (HB 10-1422), ch. 2064, p. 2064, § 11, effective August 11. L. 2014: (10) and (11) amended, (HB 14-1347), ch. 768, p. 768, § 1, effective July 1. (1) This section is similar to former § 8-53-111 as it existed prior to 1990.
(2) Section 13(2)(a) of chapter 384 (HB 21-1050), Session Laws of Colorado 2021, provides that the act changing this section applies to workers' compensation claims pending or filed on or after September 7, 2021.