Atlanta, March 4, 2025 – The Supreme Court of Georgia today has appointed Court of Appeals Presiding Judge Brian M. Rickman to the Judicial Qualifications Commission Investigative Panel and Alison T. Burleson, Chief Judge of the Ocmulgee Judicial Circuit Superior Court, to the JQC Hearing Panel.

Judge Rickman replaces DeKalb Judicial Circuit Superior Court Stacey Hydrick, who stepped down from the Investigative Panel last week.

Judge Rickman has served as the JQC’s Hearing Panel Presiding Officer since August 2024. He has served on the Court of Appeals bench since January 2016, and served as chief judge from 2021-23. He also has experience as a trial court judge, having served by designation on the Superior Court of the Mountain Judicial Circuit. Before becoming a judge, he served as the District Attorney for the Mountain Judicial Circuit, during which time he also prosecuted JQC matters.

Judge Burleson replaces Judge Rickman as the Hearing Panel Presiding Officer. She has served as a superior court judge since 2014. Prior to becoming a judge, she was an assistant district attorney in the Ocmulgee circuit and an adjunct professor at Georgia State University College of Law, where she earned her Juris Doctorate.

“We are thankful for the leadership and commitment of Judge Rickman and Judge Burleson to take on these roles,” Chief Justice Michael Boggs said. “We are also appreciative of Judge Hydrick’s many years of service to the JQC.”

Judge Hydrick was first appointed to the JCQ’s seven-member Investigative Panel in July 2017, immediately following the restructuring of the JQC. She was reappointed to a second, four-year term that was set to end in June and was unanimously selected by the panel in 2023 to serve as its Chairperson. Prior to becoming a superior court judge in 2019, Judge Hydrick served for eight years as a judge on the DeKalb County State Court.

“Judge Hydrick has been a dedicated member of the JQC’s Investigative Panel,” Chief Justice Boggs said. “In this role, she has worked tirelessly toward the the JQC’s mission of promoting and protecting the integrity and impartiality of Georgia’s judicial system.”

More information about the structure and operations of the JQC may be found on its website at gajqc.gov.