If the purpose of the civil justice system is to compensate damages with a money judgment, how does the system handle wrongdoers who frustrate that purpose by making themself “judgment proof”? This article provides an overview of the solution to that problem—namely, the law of fraudulent transfers. The terms “fraudulent transfer” and “voidable transfer” are […]
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Every lawyer who represents motor-vehicle accident victims likely determines whether potential clients and/or their resident relatives have uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage. Often enough, this coverage makes all the difference: allowing lawyers to add real value to the services we provide. This is equally true when motor-vehicle accident victims have been injured while driving in […]
Introduction Tort claims against governmental entities and/or employees in Colorado are not plaintiff-friendly. In Colorado, governmental entities are immensely insulated from tort liability under the Colorado Governmental Immunity Act (“CGIA”). While the “policy” of the CGIA may be to protect governmental entities from “unlimited liability” so that (1) “public employees are not discouraged from providing […]
To alleviate some of the uncertainty around noncooperation defenses, the legislature passed H.B. 20-1290, which enacted section 10-3-1118 and created rules for insurers asserting noncooperation. Wenzell v. United Servs. Auto. Ass’n, 2024 COA 40, ¶ 28, 552 P.3d 1121, 1126-27, cert. granted, 24SC372 (March 10, 2025). Section 10-3-1118 went into effect on September 14, 2020, […]
Certain fundamental injustices are inherent to the Colorado Workers’ Compensation system. Below, I outline a few of the issues that don’t always receive the public attention they deserve. “Fraud for thee but not for me…” C.R.S. 8-43-402 states that it is a Class 5 felony “if, for the purpose of obtaining any order, benefit, award, compensation, […]
As we look back on 2024, here are some key personal injury and insurance bad faith cases to consider (bolded sections are the comments of the author): Fear v. GEICO Casualty Co., 2024 CO 77 Plaintiff filed a statutory bad faith claim against its UIM insurer pursuant to C.R.S. section 10-3-1115. At a bench trial […]
Liability insurance coverage in sexual assault cases is often an impediment to recovery for the survivors and to the pursuit of legal remedies at all by their attorneys. Insurance covers fortuitous occurrences that are outside the control of the insured. To this end, policies only cover “accidents,” and typically exclude intentional acts, criminal acts, and […]
For all of my legal career—and much of my life—injury damage caps have been a recurring issue at the statehouse. In 1986, Colorado implemented significant tort reform measures through the passage of the Colorado Tort Claims Act, which aimed to limit the scope of personal injury lawsuits and damages in the state. Since then, there […]
Individuals and entities sometimes transfer their assets to third parties as part of “asset protection” planning in an effort to render themselves “judgment proof” or create obstacles for existing or prospective creditors who might be inclined to sue them. Such transfers often are fraudulent and voidable under the law. Lawyers can encounter fraudulent asset transfers […]
When a person’s death arises out of a tort, such as a motor vehicle accident, Colorado law allows for two distinct causes of action to be brought: a survival action and a wrongful death action. These causes of action belong to different persons (or, possibly, to the same persons but in different capacities), and they […]
Nearly one in five U.S. workers have some sort of noncompete clause in connection with their work. When a worker seeks to move on to a different opportunity, the enforceability of such noncompete clauses is an important issue for both the worker and the employer. However, the enforceability of noncompete clauses is very much in […]
