Doug Reynolds was sworn in as a La Plata County Court judge Friday in Durango.
Some 30 people gathered in a courtroom to watch Chief Judge Kim Shropshire swear in Reynolds. He swore to uphold the U.S. Constitution and the Colorado Constitution, and to uphold the law fairly for all.
“I want everybody that comes into my courtroom to feel like they are heard and that they get a chance to have their say,” Reynolds said. “People are not always going to agree with decisions I make, but I want them to at least feel like they had a chance to have their say.”
In a speech to those gathered, Reynolds said he wanted to make his mother and Michael Goldman, Reynold’s mentor who he worked under for the first seven years of his career, proud. Both died shortly before Reynolds was sworn in.
Chief Judge Kim Shropshire said Reynold’s swearing marks the completion of the district’s benches, which had a series of vacancies after Judge Suzanne Carlson and Chief Judge Jeffery Wilson retired.
“Mr. Reynolds is the final piece in our puzzle, and we now have a complete bench,” Shropshire said. “I am very, very proud to be the chief judge of these judges.”
In his new position as county court judge, Reynolds will oversee misdemeanor criminal cases and civil disputes involving less than $25,000.
Reynolds was previously a partner in The Reynolds Law Group, where he had practiced since 2017. He focused primarily on civil and real estate law. Before that, Reynolds practiced in Durango as a partner at Bopp Reynolds Law Group and as an attorney with the Law Offices of Michael E. McLachlan and Goldman, Robbins & Nicholson, PC.
Reynolds earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Colorado Denver and a law degree from Duke University School of Law.
sedmondson@durangoherald.com
