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Arvada, Colorado. CGH Injury Lawyers represents ski accident victims statewide from our Denver, Colorado office.
Arvada, Colorado

Arvada Ski Accident Lawyers for Families Who Ski the Front Range

Arvada sits where the metro runs out and the foothills start, close to the routes that lead into the high country. It also means that when a resort hazard or an out-of-control skier hurts you, the ambulance leaves your city before it reaches a Level I trauma center. We handle Colorado Ski Safety Act claims from our Denver office at 2701 Lawrence St., and we never charge a fee unless we win.

No fee unless we win
Call (303) 209-9395 Get my free ski accident case review

It's More Than Money.

Get my free ski accident case review

100% confidential. No fee unless we win.

Our Denver Office CGH Injury Lawyers 2701 Lawrence St., Suite 201 Denver, CO 80205 (303) 209-9395 Se habla español
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The law on the mountain

The Colorado Ski Safety Act and your Arvada ski accident case

The Colorado Ski Safety Act sits at C.R.S. Title 33, Article 44, and it governs ski areas across the state. It reaches skiing, snowboarding, and the other ways people slide downhill on snow or ice at a Colorado ski area. An Arvada resident hurt at Eldora, in Summit County, or anywhere else on Colorado snow is working inside this statute from the moment the injury happens.

Before the Act, ski injury claims ran on general negligence rules, and the results were inconsistent. The Act replaced that with a defined structure:

  • It names the inherent dangers of skiing, meaning the natural risks a person accepts by clicking into a binding.
  • It sets duties for both skiers and ski area operators, creating a code of conduct a court can apply.
  • It leaves a path to recover damages when negligence, rather than an inherent risk, caused the harm.

One question drives everything that follows: did an inherent danger cause this injury, or did somebody's negligence? The answer shapes who can be held responsible, what damages are available, and whether there is a claim at all.

The critical distinction

Inherent danger versus resort negligence

The line between an inherent danger of skiing and actionable negligence decides most Colorado ski cases. Injured skiers are often told they have no claim when the real answer is that nobody looked closely at which side of that line their injury falls on.

Inherent dangers (recovery barred)

  • Changing weather and visibility on the mountain
  • Variations in terrain and natural snow conditions
  • Collisions with natural objects such as trees, rocks, and cliffs
  • The ordinary risks that come with the sport itself

Resort negligence (recovery may be possible)

  • Failing to mark man-made hazards such as lift towers, hydrants, and grooming equipment
  • Chairlift, gondola, or tow-rope failure traced to deferred maintenance
  • Missing or inadequate trail signage and closure markers
  • Poorly trained or poorly supervised patrol, lift, and grooming staff

The distinction is rarely obvious from the outside. Hitting a tree is generally an inherent risk of the sport. If a resort cut those trees and left sharp, unmarked stumps in the middle of a run, that may be something else, and C.R.S. 33-44-112 only bars claims against an operator for injuries resulting from the inherent dangers and risks of skiing.

Skier duties and the downhill rule

When another skier caused your injury: duties under C.R.S. 33-44-109

Plenty of ski injuries have nothing to do with the resort. When another skier hits you, C.R.S. 33-44-109 supplies the rules, and the statute gives injured skiers something valuable up front. Under subsection (1), a skier/skier collision is neither an inherent risk nor a risk you assumed when you bought your pass, at least in an action by one skier against another.

That single sentence is why a resort's inherent-risk defense does not automatically travel to the person who ran into you. The statute then lays out what every skier owes everyone else on the hill.

  1. Control and lookout

    Every skier must control their speed and course and keep a proper lookout to avoid other people and objects. The statute puts the primary duty on the person skiing downhill to avoid colliding with anyone or anything below them, which is the rule most often broken when somebody is struck from behind.

  2. Merging and starting from a stop

    Before starting to ski from a stationary position, or entering a run from the side, a skier has the duty to avoid skiers already moving on that trail. Failing to look before dropping in is one of the more common ways fault gets assigned in a Colorado collision case.

  3. Closed trails and posted warnings

    Skiing a run posted as closed violates the statute outright. Skiers are also presumed to have seen and understood the information posted near base area lifts, on the lifts, and on the trails they ski.

  4. Equipment

    Each ski or snowboard has to carry a strap or other device capable of stopping it if it comes off the skier, and cross-country skis are excepted. The Ski Safety Act does not require helmets at any age.

  5. Impairment and leaving the scene

    Moving uphill on a lift or using a trail while impaired by alcohol or a controlled substance is prohibited. So is leaving the scene of an injury collision before giving your name and current address to a ski area employee or patroller, unless you are going for help. Violating the closed-trail, impairment, or closed-lands provisions is a civil infraction carrying a fine of up to $1,000, and leaving the scene of an injury collision is a petty offense.

  6. How fault gets divided

    Colorado applies comparative negligence to these disputes. Under C.R.S. 13-21-111, you can recover as long as your share of the negligence was not as great as the other party's, and your award drops in proportion to your share. The patrol incident report, witness names, and any resort camera footage usually decide that argument.

The truth about waivers

Does the waiver on my lift ticket end my Arvada ski case?

Nearly every Colorado resort puts a liability waiver in front of you when you buy a lift ticket or a season pass, and those waivers are real. They are also not the end of the analysis, and the answer you get from a resort's insurer is not always the complete one.

Colorado courts have generally enforced recreational waivers signed by adults as to ordinary negligence, while treating some conduct as outside what a waiver can cover. Whether a particular waiver reaches a particular injury turns on how the document is written and what the resort knew or should have known before you got hurt.

For injured children, the legislature answered part of this by statute. C.R.S. 13-22-107(3) lets a parent waive a child's prospective negligence claim, and subsection (4) is explicit that no parent can waive a child's claim for a willful and wanton, reckless, or grossly negligent act or omission.

We read the waiver, the pass agreement, and the facts together at no charge in the initial consultation.

Local Knowledge

Trauma care next door. Two counties. Two ways into the high country

Three things about Arvada shape a ski injury claim, and none of them are obvious until you need them.

Trauma Care

Your trauma care happens in the next city over

Arvada's designated trauma care sits in neighboring cities rather than inside city limits, so a seriously injured skier coming off the hill is routed out of Arvada. Intermountain Health Lutheran Hospital, which opened its replacement campus at 12911 W. 40th Ave. in Wheat Ridge in August 2024, is a Level II designated trauma center and the closest one to much of Arvada. St. Anthony Hospital at 11600 W. 2nd Place in Lakewood is the nearest Level I center, with Denver Health in Denver and HCA HealthONE Swedish in Englewood among the other Level I centers in the metro. Each handoff between those facilities generates its own records, and the reason for each transfer matters to the damages case, so we order the complete chain from the resort patrol report through discharge.

Courthouse

One city, two judicial districts

Arvada straddles a county line. At the 2020 census, 121,510 Arvada residents lived in Jefferson County and 2,892 lived in Adams County. Jefferson County sits in the 1st Judicial District, with the courthouse at 100 Jefferson County Parkway in Golden, and the Adams County portion sits in the 17th Judicial District at 1100 Judicial Center Drive in Brighton. Where a ski case actually gets filed is a separate question from where you live, because venue usually follows the defendant or the place of injury, and a claim against a resort commonly belongs in the ski county. We handle cases in Front Range and mountain district courts alike, and we tell you which courthouse your case is headed for before you sign anything.

The Corridor

Highway 93, Coal Creek Canyon, and the I-70 on-ramp

Arvada sits at the western edge of the metro, where Highway 93 runs south toward Golden and the start of the I-70 climb, and where Coal Creek Canyon Road, State Highway 72, cuts west toward the Peak to Peak Highway and Eldora. That geography puts several ski areas within reach by more than one route, and it matters to a case, because reconstructing an injury starts with knowing which resort, which route, and which day. Our office at 2701 Lawrence St. is a straight run down I-70 and I-25 from Arvada.

Compensation

What compensation can an injured Arvada skier recover?

When negligence is established, Colorado law allows recovery for documented economic losses and for the non-economic harm that does not show up on an invoice.

Economic damages

  • Emergency transport off the mountain, including air ambulance
  • Surgery, hospitalization, and specialty care at St. Anthony, Lutheran, or another receiving hospital
  • Lost wages and lost earning capacity during recovery
  • Physical and occupational rehabilitation
  • Future medical care and life care plan costs
  • Out-of-pocket costs tied directly to the injury

Non-economic damages

  • Pain and suffering from orthopedic, spinal, or head injuries
  • Permanent disability or loss of physical function
  • Loss of enjoyment of life, including skiing and the outdoors
  • In a fatal accident, funeral costs and loss of companionship

The Ski Safety Act damages cap, and the exceptions inside it

C.R.S. 33-44-113 caps what a skier can recover from a ski area operator. The total is limited to $1,000,000 in present value, with any derivative claim by another claimant capped at $250,000 and any claim attributable to non-economic loss capped at $250,000.

  • Injuries to a passenger riding a passenger tramway, which includes chairlifts, are excluded from that cap by the text of the statute.
  • The cap governs claims against a ski area operator. It does not govern a claim against another skier whose negligence hurt you.
  • The statute lets a court award more than the limit on good cause shown, but only for excess future lost earnings or excess future medical and health care costs, and only where applying the limit would be unfair.
  • The statute also directs that the limits and their exceptions are not disclosed to the jury.

How any of this lands depends on the facts of your injury, so treat these figures as the starting point of a conversation with an attorney rather than the answer to your case.

Deadlines and fault

The two-year filing deadline and partial fault rules

Colorado gives you two years, not the three you may have heard about for car crashes. Under C.R.S. 33-44-111, actions against a ski area operator or its employees for injuries caused by the maintenance, supervision, or operation of a ski area or passenger tramway must be brought within two years after the claim arises. A claim against another skier runs on the general two-year tort deadline in C.R.S. 13-80-102(1)(a), so the window is the same length from either direction.

  • Under C.R.S. 13-80-108(1), the clock generally starts when both the injury and its cause are known, or reasonably should have been known. In most collisions and most marked-hazard cases that is the day it happened, and waiting to learn the full extent of your damages does not buy you more time.
  • Colorado uses modified comparative negligence. C.R.S. 13-21-111 lets you recover as long as your negligence was not as great as that of the party you are suing, with your award reduced by your share, which means a finding of 50 percent or more against you ends the claim.
  • Ski evidence has a short shelf life. Patrol incident reports, lift inspection records, grooming and maintenance logs, and resort camera footage get overwritten, archived, or lost. Getting a preservation letter out early is the practical reason to call before you have finished treatment.
Why CGH

Why injured Arvada skiers choose CGH Injury Lawyers

Attorneys who work the Ski Safety Act directly, a real Denver office you can drive to, trial-ready representation, bilingual service, and no fee unless we win. We do not publish ski settlement figures, because a number on a page tells you nothing about your injury or the resort that caused it.

The Statute

C.R.S. 33-44-101 et seq.

The Ski Safety Act is a narrow statute with rules that do not appear anywhere else in Colorado injury law. We work in it directly and know where the line between inherent risk and negligence falls.

Two Counties, Two Districts

Jefferson and Adams.

Arvada spans a county line, and ski claims often belong in a mountain county rather than either one. We tell you which court your case is headed for at the start, not after filing.

Fast Evidence Action

We move before footage disappears.

Patrol reports and lift camera footage can be gone in weeks. We send preservation requests to the resort as soon as we sign a case.

Two-Year Clock

Shorter than you think.

The deadline against a ski area operator is two years under C.R.S. 33-44-111, a year shorter than most Colorado motor vehicle claims. We track it from day one.

Trial-Ready

8 attorneys, built for trial.

Managing Partner Kevin Cheney is a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates and has tried more than 25 cases to verdict. We prepare every case for trial rather than for whatever the first offer turns out to be.

No Win, No Fee

Contingency only.

You pay nothing out of pocket for legal fees. We advance costs and collect only from a settlement or verdict in your favor.

How it works

How we handle an Arvada ski accident case

A ski injury case moves through six stages, from a free evaluation to trial when a resort or an insurer will not be reasonable. Most resolve before a courtroom, and we build every one as though it will not.

  1. Free case evaluation

    We go through what happened, explain where the Ski Safety Act applies to your facts, and answer your questions at no cost and no obligation. Call (303) 209-9395 or come to the office at 2701 Lawrence St.

  2. Evidence preservation

    We send preservation letters to the resort and request patrol incident reports, maintenance and grooming records, lift inspection documentation, and any on-mountain camera footage before it cycles out.

  3. Liability analysis

    We separate inherent risk from negligence and identify everyone responsible, whether that is the operator, another skier, an instructor, or an equipment manufacturer. We also evaluate what the waiver in your pass agreement does and does not reach.

  4. Medical records and damages

    We collect the patrol report, the transport records, the emergency and surgical care at St. Anthony, Lutheran, or wherever you were taken, and the rehabilitation that followed, so nothing gets left out of the damages claim.

  5. Demand and negotiation

    We present documented damages to the resort's insurer or the at-fault skier's carrier and negotiate from a position of trial readiness rather than a willingness to take the first number offered.

  6. Filing suit

    When there is no fair resolution, we file, whether that is in Jefferson County District Court in Golden, Adams County District Court in Brighton, or the ski county where the injury happened. Our trial attorneys are prepared to put the case to a Colorado jury.

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Questions

Arvada ski accident, frequently asked questions

How long do I have to file a ski accident claim if I live in Arvada?

Two years. Against a ski area operator or its employees, C.R.S. 33-44-111 sets a two-year deadline running from when the claim arises. Against another skier, the general two-year tort deadline in C.R.S. 13-80-102(1)(a) applies. Under C.R.S. 13-80-108(1) the clock generally starts once the injury and its cause are known or reasonably should have been known, which in most ski cases is the day of the accident. Waiting until treatment ends does not extend it, so it is worth calling while you are still in care.

I was treated outside Arvada. Does where I was taken affect my case?

Not your right to bring a claim, but it does affect the record. A seriously injured Arvada skier is typically taken or transferred to Intermountain Health Lutheran Hospital in Wheat Ridge, a Level II designated center, or to a Level I center such as St. Anthony in Lakewood, Denver Health, or UCHealth University of Colorado Hospital. Each handoff generates its own records, and the gaps between them are exactly where insurers argue about causation. We order the full chain rather than whatever the carrier asks for.

Does the waiver on my season pass mean I have no case?

Not automatically. Colorado courts have generally enforced recreational waivers signed by adults as to ordinary negligence, while treating certain conduct as beyond what a waiver covers. Whether yours applies depends on how it is worded and what the resort knew before you were hurt. If the injured person is a child, C.R.S. 13-22-107(4) is explicit that a parent cannot waive a child's claim for a willful and wanton, reckless, or grossly negligent act. We review the document at no charge.

Another skier hit me from behind. Is that automatically their fault?

It is a strong starting position, not an automatic result. C.R.S. 33-44-109(2) places the primary duty on the person skiing downhill to avoid colliding with anyone below them, and subsection (1) says a skier/skier collision is not an inherent risk or an assumed risk in a claim between skiers. Fault can still shift if you stopped in a blind spot or entered a run without looking uphill, and Colorado divides fault comparatively under C.R.S. 13-21-111. The patrol report and witnesses usually settle it.

The other skier took off before I got their name. What now?

That conduct is prohibited. C.R.S. 33-44-109(10) bars a skier involved in an injury collision from leaving before giving their name and current address to a ski area employee or a patroller, except to go get help, and under subsection (12)(b) doing so is a petty offense. Report it to patrol immediately, ask them to document it, and collect witness names before you leave the mountain. Resort and lift scan data sometimes helps identify the person afterward, which is another reason to move quickly.

Is there really a cap on what I can recover from a resort?

Yes, with several exceptions worth knowing. C.R.S. 33-44-113 limits total recovery against a ski area operator to $1,000,000 present value, with derivative claims and non-economic damages each capped at $250,000. Injuries to a passenger riding a chairlift or other passenger tramway are excluded from the cap by the statute's own terms, the cap does not apply to a claim against another skier, and a court may exceed it on good cause shown for excess future lost earnings or future medical costs. Which of those applies is fact-specific, so confirm it with an attorney before assuming your case is limited.

I got hurt at Eldora, not at a Summit County resort. Does that change anything?

The Ski Safety Act applies to Colorado ski areas statewide, so the legal framework is the same wherever you were skiing. What changes is practical: which county the resort sits in, which court a lawsuit would be filed in, and which insurer is behind the operator. For an Arvada resident this comes up often, because the canyon routes west of the city reach different ski areas than the I-70 corridor does. We handle claims in both directions.

What should I do right after a ski accident?

Get medical attention first. Then make sure patrol files an official incident report and get a copy before you leave the mountain, photograph the scene and your injuries without moving equipment, and collect names and contact information for witnesses and any other skier involved. Do not give a recorded statement to any insurer before you have talked to an attorney. You can reach our Denver office at (303) 209-9395 or use the form on this page.

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