Donald Zuckerman, the longtime head of Colorado’s film office and a key player in the state’s push to land the Sundance Film Festival, is now suing the state that once touted his work. In a new lawsuit, he accuses Colorado of wrongful termination, age discrimination, and defamation, saying he was pushed out last year after flagging an accounting error and refusing to resign. The complaint, filed in mid-June, names the Office of Economic Development and International Trade (OEDIT) and its executive director, Eve Lieberman, as defendants.
How the complaint says the firing went down
The lawsuit, filed June 10, states that Zuckerman was removed from his post at OEDIT in September 2025 after being accused of yelling at a coworker, an allegation he flatly denies. It further claims that the agency circulated messages suggesting serious misconduct. According to The Denver Gazette, Zuckerman contends those notices damaged his reputation and says he is seeking an apology and reimbursement of legal fees instead of conventional monetary damages. The filing names both the agency and Lieberman and asks the court to clear his name.
Accounting error, PIP and the road to termination
Court filings, as reported by Courthouse News Service, say Zuckerman first reported an accounting miscredit of roughly $747,816 to the film office in April 2023 and pushed for a transparent fix. The complaint alleges that Lieberman placed him on a performance-improvement plan about two and a half years before his termination and that, after he completed that plan, he was later told to resign and then fired when he refused. Those court papers form the backbone of his wrongful-termination and retaliation claims.
Zuckerman has said he was “targeted for erasure” after being left out of awards and public recognition tied to Colorado’s efforts to land Sundance. He told reporters that a terse announcement to industry contacts made it seem as if he had been removed for cause. Reporting earlier this year noted that his attorneys sent a formal notice of potential claims in February, a step required before suing the state. Westword quoted Zuckerman saying he wanted a “hard apology” more than financial damages.
An OEDIT spokesperson told The Denver Gazette the agency “is committed to fostering a safe and healthy workplace for all while upholding workplace policies and the law,” and added that a demand letter reflects one side’s allegations rather than facts. The state declined further comment on the pending case, according to that reporting.
What the lawsuit is actually claiming
The complaint lays out a mix of statutory and common-law claims, including age discrimination, defamation, intentional infliction of emotional distress, unlawful retaliation, and wrongful discharge. It asks the court to vindicate Zuckerman’s reputation and award recovery of legal fees, rather than traditional compensatory damages, as outlined in Courthouse News Service coverage of the filing.
Why the timing and legal process matter
Under Colorado law, people who plan to sue a state agency generally must first file a written notice of claim. The State Office of Risk Management notes that notices under the Colorado Governmental Immunity Act must be filed within 182 days, and litigation cannot go forward until the claim is denied or 90 days have passed. Local outlets have reported that Zuckerman’s notice of potential claims was filed earlier this year.
The dispute lands as Colorado gears up to host the Sundance Film Festival in Boulder in January 2027, a move that has raised the profile of the state film office and its leadership (Axios).
The lawsuit now heads into the discovery phase, where internal emails and personnel files are likely to get a close look as both sides prepare for pretrial motions. For the moment, Zuckerman is seeking a legal and reputational reset, and OEDIT says it disputes his allegations. The case is set to move forward in Denver County District Court in the coming months.
