Denver Slip And Fall Lawyers Who Make Property Owners Answer

You generally have two years from the date of the fall to file a personal injury lawsuit in Colorado. If you fell on Denver government property, such as a city sidewalk, a Denver Public Schools building, or an RTD station, a much shorter 182-day written notice deadline applies under the Colorado Governmental Immunity Act (C.R.S. 24-10-109). That clock runs from the date you discover the injury, not necessarily the fall date. Missing either deadline will almost certainly end your claim, so consult an attorney as soon as possible after the fall.

Yes, in certain situations. Claims against the City and County of Denver are governed by the Colorado Governmental Immunity Act (C.R.S. 24-10-109). You must file a formal written notice within 182 days of discovering the injury, and an immunity exception must cover your claim. Cities can be liable for dangerous sidewalk conditions if they had actual or constructive notice and failed to repair them. We evaluate the specific facts of your Denver fall against the applicable CGIA exceptions before any notice is filed.

Colorado's modified comparative negligence rule (C.R.S. 13-21-111) lets you recover damages as long as you were less than 50 percent responsible for the fall. Your compensation is reduced by your percentage of fault. At 50 percent or more, you recover nothing. Denver property insurers commonly argue that you were distracted, wearing inappropriate footwear, or should have noticed the hazard. That is why scene documentation, witness statements, and surveillance footage are so critical to preserving your recovery.

Personal injury cases arising in Denver County are filed in Denver District Court, the 2nd Judicial District, with civil matters heard at 1437 Bannock St., the City and County Building. Most slip and fall claims settle before a lawsuit is filed, but the court where a case would be tried shapes every negotiation. We handle Denver District Court cases directly from our Lawrence St. office.

Not automatically. Colorado follows the natural accumulation rule, which generally protects property owners from liability for ice and snow that naturally accumulates during a storm. However, once enough time has passed for reasonable snow removal after a storm, or if the Denver owner created or worsened the hazard, for example by piling shoveled snow that refroze into an ice patch near building entrances, liability can attach. Recent Colorado appellate decisions have narrowed the natural accumulation defense when owners begin snow removal but do it carelessly.

You may be entitled to compensation for medical bills, lost wages, rehabilitation costs, pain and suffering, emotional distress, and future care needs. Colorado does not cap economic damages such as medical bills and lost wages in premises liability cases. Non-economic damages are subject to the general statutory cap under C.R.S. 13-21-102.5, currently $1.5 million for claims accruing on or after January 1, 2025. Damages for physical impairment or disfigurement are not capped at all under that statute. If the fall was on Denver government property, the CGIA caps apply instead at $505,000 per person and $1,421,000 per occurrence for claims accruing on or after January 1, 2026 (C.R.S. 24-10-114(1)(b)).

Under Colorado's Premises Liability Act (C.R.S. 13-21-115), your visitor status at the time of the fall determines what duty the Denver property owner owed you. An invitee, such as a customer at a Cherry Creek store or a patron at a LoDo restaurant, is owed the highest duty: the owner must actively inspect for hazards and fix them. A licensee, such as a social guest at someone's home, is owed a duty to warn of known dangers only. A trespasser is owed almost nothing. This classification is where every Denver slip and fall case begins.

Not necessarily. The open-and-obvious defense is frequently raised by Denver property owners and their insurers, but it is not absolute. Colorado courts have begun limiting it in cases where the hazard was so unreasonably dangerous that injury was foreseeable regardless of its visibility. The facts of how the hazard was created, how long it existed, and whether the owner took any steps to address it all matter. We use surveillance footage, maintenance records, and witness testimony to challenge this defense when the circumstances support it.