You were harmed by an individual, and possibly by an institution whose failure created the opportunity. CGH Injury Lawyers represents Highlands Ranch and Douglas County survivors in civil claims that are separate from any criminal case. Colorado eliminated the statute of limitations for sexual misconduct civil claims. Your first conversation with us is confidential, free, and at a pace you set.
No fee unless we winIt's More Than Money.
You are in control
There is no obligation and no public record when you reach out. We listen, explain your options, and move at a pace that respects you. Nothing happens that you have not chosen.
CGH Injury Lawyers does not have a Highlands Ranch office. We represent Highlands Ranch and Douglas County survivors from our Denver office at 2701 Lawrence St., Suite 201, Denver, CO 80205, and we meet you wherever you are comfortable. Civil sexual assault claims are handled with strict confidentiality, a trauma-informed approach, and no attorney fee unless we recover for you.
The criminal system and the civil system pursue different goals. Criminal courts exist to punish an offender. Civil courts exist to make a survivor financially whole and to force the organizations that enabled harm to answer for it. Many survivors of sexual assault in Highlands Ranch and Douglas County find that the civil path delivers something the criminal process cannot: a result that belongs to them, not to the state.
Because civil cases use the lower preponderance-of-evidence standard, you can win a civil claim even when a prosecutor declined to file, when charges were dropped, or when a criminal jury returned a not-guilty verdict. The two outcomes are legally independent.
Colorado has taken significant legislative steps to expand the civil filing window for sexual misconduct and childhood sexual abuse. These changes mean that many survivors who assumed their claims had expired may still have options. Because the analysis is fact-specific, the most important first step is a confidential evaluation of your exact timeline.
These laws were written with the understanding that survivors often need years, sometimes decades, before they are ready to come forward. If you have thought it happened too long ago, the honest answer is that you may still have options under Colorado law. We will evaluate your specific situation and tell you candidly where it stands.
One of the most consequential aspects of a civil case is the ability to reach beyond the individual. Organizations that employed or supervised an abuser, and that failed to protect you, often bear legal responsibility and often have the resources to provide meaningful compensation. Identifying those organizations and proving their failures is a central part of the investigation we conduct for every Highlands Ranch claim.
Theory of liability
Organizations in Douglas County placing employees or volunteers in positions of trust, particularly with children or vulnerable adults, are required to conduct reasonable background checks. Hiring someone without screening prior complaints or a history of misconduct creates liability when harm follows in a school, youth program, or healthcare setting.
Theory of liability
Even with adequate hiring, organizations must properly oversee those they place in authority. When administrators at a Highlands Ranch school, religious program, or youth league receive complaints about inappropriate behavior and take no meaningful action, the organization shares legal responsibility for what happens next.
Theory of liability
When an organization learns of misconduct or red flags about an employee or volunteer but keeps that person in a position where they can cause harm, it becomes liable for abuse that follows. This pattern is common where institutions transferred a known problem rather than removing it from the community.
Theory of liability
In some circumstances an employer may be held responsible for the acts of an employee that occurred within the scope of employment, particularly where the employment relationship created the access and authority that enabled the abuse. Rideshare companies and transportation services operating in Highlands Ranch may be reached on this theory.
It is not about reliving what happened. It is about reclaiming control and forcing the institutions that failed you to answer for it.
A civil sexual assault case filed by a Highlands Ranch survivor lives in Douglas County: the courthouse where it is litigated, the medical facilities that may have documented care, and the institutions operating in this specific community. Here is the local ground every claim moves through.
Courthouse
A Highlands Ranch civil sexual assault lawsuit is filed in the Douglas County Combined Courts (District Court, 23rd Judicial District) at 4000 Justice Way, Suite 2009, Castle Rock, CO 80109. The 23rd Judicial District was established January 14, 2025, covering Douglas, Elbert, and Lincoln counties after separating from the former 18th Judicial District. Local procedure, the Douglas County jury pool, and the institutions you may be suing all differ from courts in Denver or Jefferson County. CGH Injury Lawyers handles Douglas County District Court cases directly and does not refer them out. Protective orders, sealed records, and pseudonym filings are sought in this court when applicable to protect a survivor's identity.
Medical Care
Survivors seeking immediate medical care in Highlands Ranch are often treated at UCHealth Highlands Ranch Hospital at 1500 Park Central Drive, a Level III Trauma Center located within the community. More acute care is available at HCA HealthONE Sky Ridge Medical Center at 10101 RidgeGate Parkway, Lone Tree, a Level II Trauma Center, and at AdventHealth Littleton at 7700 S Broadway, Littleton, also a Level II Trauma Center. Medical records from a forensic exam or emergency care documenting injuries can form part of the evidentiary foundation for a civil claim, and we work with survivors to gather that documentation confidentially and without retraumatization.
Community Context
Highlands Ranch is one of the largest unincorporated communities in Colorado, with over 100,000 residents in Douglas County. The community has an extensive network of schools, youth programs, recreational facilities, and employer campuses, including the Highlands Ranch Town Center near the Lucent Boulevard and C-470 corridor. Rideshare and gig-economy services are widely used along the C-470, US-85, and I-25 corridors connecting Highlands Ranch to the broader metro. The concentration of schools and youth programs in a large planned community means that institutional liability is a real dimension of sexual assault claims originating in this area. Law enforcement for unincorporated Highlands Ranch is provided by the Douglas County Sheriff's Office.
A civil claim seeks to make you whole by compensating the harm you have suffered. Colorado law recognizes economic and non-economic damages in sexual abuse cases, and in cases involving egregious conduct, courts may also award punitive damages.
In cases involving egregious conduct, such as an organizational cover-up or deliberate indifference to a known risk, Colorado courts may award punitive damages. Under C.R.S. 13-21-102(1)(a), punitive damages are capped at the amount of actual damages, and a court may increase them to three times actual damages if the defendant continued willful and wanton conduct after the lawsuit was filed. Punitive damages are not compensation in the traditional sense. Their function is to punish the wrongdoer and deter similar conduct. We evaluate whether the facts of your case support pursuing them.
Every case is different, and you set the pace. A common fear is public exposure. Colorado's legal system provides meaningful privacy protections, and your safety is central to how these cases are handled from the very first phone call.
Your first contact with us is protected by attorney-client privilege and creates no public record. We meet by phone or video, wherever you are comfortable. We listen, explain your options under Colorado law, and answer questions. There is no obligation to proceed. CGH Injury Lawyers serves Highlands Ranch from our Denver office and comes to you in Douglas County.
Using civil discovery, we obtain records you may not currently have access to, including employment files, prior complaint records, institutional policies, and training logs. For Highlands Ranch claims involving schools, youth programs, or healthcare facilities, that record trail often reveals patterns of known risk the institution failed to address. We build the institutional accountability case while protecting your privacy throughout.
In many sexual abuse cases, courts allow survivors to file under a pseudonym such as Jane Doe or John Doe so your real name does not appear in public court records. Courts in the 23rd Judicial District (Douglas County Combined Courts, Castle Rock) can also issue protective orders sealing sensitive documents and restricting attendance at depositions. We pursue every available protection before any document bearing your name enters the public record.
We document the full scope of harm and pursue resolution with every responsible party. Most civil cases resolve before trial, often through confidential settlement. If a Highlands Ranch institution or its insurer will not be fair, we file in the Douglas County Combined Courts (23rd Judicial District, 4000 Justice Way, Castle Rock) and try your case before a Douglas County jury.
CGH Injury Lawyers is a eight-attorney Colorado personal injury firm, formerly Cheney Galluzzi and Howard, founded in 2016. We are trial lawyers willing to take a civil sexual assault case as far as it needs to go, and we handle sensitive claims with the discretion, confidentiality, and respect that survivors deserve. Managing Partner Kevin Cheney is a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates and has tried over 25 cases to verdict. Timothy G. Tarr has been recognized by Best Lawyers every year since 2023. Every Highlands Ranch case is handled by a licensed Colorado attorney, not a paralegal.
For civil claims based on sexual misconduct, Colorado eliminated the statute of limitations effective January 1, 2022 (C.R.S. 13-80-103.7). Highlands Ranch survivors can file at any time. That open window also reaches back to older abuse if the original filing deadline had not yet expired by January 1, 2022. Because that analysis depends on your specific facts, a confidential consultation is the only reliable way to determine whether your claim can move forward.
Yes. A civil claim is legally independent from any criminal case. You can pursue civil compensation whether or not a prosecutor ever filed charges, whether charges were dropped, and whether a criminal jury returned a not-guilty verdict. Civil cases use a lower standard of proof: preponderance of the evidence, meaning it is more likely than not that the assault occurred and caused you harm. That lower standard means evidence that was not enough for a criminal conviction can still support a successful civil claim.
Often, yes. Schools, employers, religious organizations, youth programs, and healthcare facilities in Highlands Ranch and Douglas County may be liable if they failed to properly screen, supervise, or discipline the person who harmed you, or if they ignored prior complaints. For childhood sexual abuse occurring on or after January 1, 2022with no filing deadline. Holding an institution accountable can secure meaningful compensation and force organizational change that protects others in the Highlands Ranch community.
In many sexual assault cases, courts allow survivors to file under a pseudonym such as Jane Doe or John Doe, so your real name does not appear in public court records at the Douglas County Combined Courts (23rd Judicial District, Castle Rock). Courts can also issue protective orders to seal sensitive records and restrict access to depositions. Your initial consultation with CGH is protected by attorney-client privilege and creates no public record. We pursue every available privacy protection before anything bearing your name is filed.
Compensation covers economic damages including therapy and psychiatric care, medical costs, lost wages, and reduced future earning capacity. It also covers non-economic damages including pain and suffering, emotional distress such as PTSD and anxiety, and loss of enjoyment of life. In cases of egregious or willful conduct, Colorado courts may also award punitive damages. Under C.R.S. 13-21-102(1)(a), punitive damages are capped at the amount of actual damages, though they may be increased to three times actual damages if willful and wanton conduct continued after the case was filed. We document every dimension of harm so nothing is left out of your claim.
No. CGH Injury Lawyers has one office, at 2701 Lawrence St., Suite 201, Denver, CO 80205. We serve Highlands Ranch and all of Douglas County from that office, file cases in the Douglas County Combined Courts (23rd Judicial District) at 4000 Justice Way, Castle Rock, and meet you wherever is convenient and comfortable for you. Consultations are free, completely confidential, and protected by attorney-client privilege. Call (303) 209-9395.
Highlands Ranch
Get Help
It's More Than Money.
Free, confidential consultation. No fee unless we win. Available in English and Spanish, across Highlands Ranch and Douglas County.
Prefer to read first? See how we handle the case and protect your privacy.
CGH Injury Lawyers does not have a Highlands Ranch office. We serve Highlands Ranch from our Denver office at 2701 Lawrence St., Suite 201, Denver, CO 80205, and file in the Douglas County Combined Courts in Castle Rock.
