When your child or your mother or father is the one who was burned, you become the nurse, the driver to every appointment, and the person keeping track of the paperwork. We help Federal Heights families understand who may be responsible and what a claim can cover, including the cost of care still ahead.
No fee unless we winIt's More Than Money.
Bath water that comes out of the tap far too hot can scald a toddler or an older parent. If that happened in a rental in Federal Heights, you're likely juggling dressing changes, missed work, and a landlord who may not be returning calls. A Federal Heights burn injury lawyer can explain whether the property owner, a product maker, or someone else may be responsible, in words written for families rather than lawyers.
CGH Injury Lawyers can be reached at (303) 209-9395 whenever you're ready to talk. If writing it down is easier, use our contact page.
Who may be accountable depends on where the burn happened.
A water heater set too high, a missing anti-scald valve, a gas furnace that went unserviced, or wiring that sparks behind a wall can all hurt the people living in a rental. Colorado's Premises Liability Act (C.R.S. 13-21-115) spells out what a "landowner" owes, and its definition includes a person legally responsible for the condition of real property, which a landlord can be. How much the landlord owed a tenant's family depends on status, a question the court decides. An invitee's claim can rest on what the landlord knew or should have known; a licensee's claim generally needs the landlord's actual knowledge.
A collision can start a fire that burns a parent or grandparent riding in the car. A burn like that can be part of a claim against a driver whose negligence caused the crash.
A kettle that tips too easily, a space heater without a working shutoff, a phone charger or a toy battery can cause serious burns. A Colorado product claim can proceed on negligence, strict liability or other legal theories (C.R.S. 13-21-401(2)). Strict liability centers on whether the product was defective and whether the defect caused the burn.
For a parent hurt on the job, workers' compensation is generally the only claim against that parent's own employer (C.R.S. 8-41-102). If a company that isn't the employer caused the burn, the worker may receive workers' compensation and pursue that company for damages exceeding what workers' compensation provides, under C.R.S. 8-41-203(1)(a).
Colorado law on four subjects applies to a family's burn claim.
What a property owner owed a burned child or adult depends on why that person was there. The Act recognizes three statuses. A trespasser is on the land without consent. A licensee is there for their own purposes with the owner's permission. A social guest counts as a licensee. By contrast, an invitee enters for business both sides have an interest in, or because the owner represented that the public was expected to come in.
Invitees are owed the greatest care, and the Act lets them recover when a landowner unreasonably fails to protect them from a danger it knew of or should have known of. A licensee is generally held to proof that the owner really knew the hazard existed (C.R.S. 13-21-115(4)(b)). If the land is classified for property tax purposes as agricultural or vacant, an invitee also has to prove actual knowledge (C.R.S. 13-21-115(4)(c)(II)). The court, applying the Act's definitions, decides which status applies (C.R.S. 13-21-115(6)).
In a negligence claim, C.R.S. 13-21-111 lets a burned person whose negligence was less than the defendant's still recover, with the damages reduced by that person's percentage. If the burned person's share is equal to or greater than the defendant's, judgment goes to the defendant.
For example, if a jury put 10 percent of the fault for a scald on the injured person and 90 percent on a landlord who ignored repeated complaints about scalding water, the damages would be reduced by 10 percent.
Colorado generally requires negligence and premises lawsuits to be filed within two years of accrual (C.R.S. 13-80-102(1)(a)); the same period covers strict liability claims over defective products (C.R.S. 13-80-102(1)(b)). In a family car wreck, tort claims arising out of the use or operation of a motor vehicle generally have three years (C.R.S. 13-80-101(1)(n)). By contrast, a strict liability claim against the manufacturer of a defective vehicle part generally still falls under the two-year period (C.R.S. 13-80-101(1)(n)(II)).
For those periods, a claim generally accrues once a reasonably diligent person would have known about both the injury and its cause (C.R.S. 13-80-108(1)). When the injured person is a child, separate rules can change how the deadline runs.
For a public entity or one of its employees on the job, written notice must be filed within 182 days after you discover the injury, regardless of whether you know all the elements of the claim at that point. Colorado law says a failure to comply will "forever bar" the action (C.R.S. 24-10-109(1)).
Because the deadline depends on who is responsible, how the burn happened and who was hurt, have a lawyer confirm the date for your family's claim.
A $1.5 million cap applies to noneconomic damages for claims arising on or after January 1, 2025. That category includes pain and suffering, inconvenience and emotional stress. Medical malpractice and wrongful death claims are governed by different provisions, and the figure is scheduled to be adjusted for inflation starting January 1, 2028.
The limit applies to noneconomic damages only, so a family's economic losses, hospital bills and missed paychecks among them, aren't capped by it (C.R.S. 13-21-102.5(3)). Subsection (5) adds a second carve-out for compensatory damages for physical impairment or disfigurement, which the section doesn't restrict at all. Scarring may be compensated as disfigurement.
Court
Federal Heights is one of the cities Adams County names as part of the county. Adams County's court is the Adams County Justice Center, 1100 Judicial Center Dr., Brighton, CO 80601, within the 17th Judicial District. Where a lawsuit is filed depends on the facts.
Trauma care
Colorado's designated trauma facility list has no entry for Federal Heights. It lists HCA HealthONE Mountain Ridge, at 9191 Grant St in Thornton, as a Level II trauma facility, and St Anthony North Hospital, at 14300 Orchard Parkway in Westminster, as Level III. Ask each hospital and clinic that treated your family member for a full copy of the records.
Fire department
Federal Heights runs its own Federal Heights Fire Department, based at 2400 W. 90th Avenue, which provides public safety services along with fire prevention and education across the city. If firefighters or paramedics responded, their records may help show what happened.
Rental inspections
The city's Rental Housing Inspection Program requires residential rental properties in Federal Heights to be registered and inspected for safe, healthy and habitable housing. According to the city, tenants can contact the Rental Housing Inspector with questions and to schedule complaint-based inspections.
Our office
We don't have an office in Federal Heights. Families here reach us at our Denver office on Lawrence Street.
What a family's claim is worth depends on who was burned, how badly, and what care lies ahead, and for that reason we don't publish burn settlement figures.
MedlinePlus explains that burns are described as superficial, partial-thickness or full-thickness, and that "Full-thickness burns (formerly known as third-degree burns) affect the deep layers of skin." We begin with the medical records, because the claim has to reflect the treatment your family member needs.
Burn surgeons, vocational experts and medical economists help us prepare a Life Care Plan, a document estimating the cost of the care your family member may need in the years ahead.
If an insurer blames your family for a scald or fire, we look to maintenance records, fire origin analysis and testimony from experts.
CGH Injury Lawyers, formerly Cheney Galluzzi & Howard, was founded in Denver in 2016. Managing Partner Kevin Cheney is a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA). For families in Federal Heights and elsewhere, the firm prepares each case as if it will be tried.
If the facts or the law don't support a claim, we'll let you know.
Families who prefer Spanish can call (303) 835-9177.
"Major burns need urgent medical care," MedlinePlus states, and "The most serious burns can be painless." Call 911 in an emergency.
If hot tap water caused the scald, photograph the water heater and the faucet, and write down what happened. Keep the product, cord or clothing involved.
Email or text your landlord or property manager, describe the problem and keep a copy. Save any earlier complaints you made about the water, heat or wiring.
Take pictures at each dressing change and after each medical visit, with the date noted.
Before you give a recorded statement to an insurance company, you can ask to talk with a lawyer first. Families can reach us at (303) 209-9395.
Note appointments, hours of care you provide, work you miss, and changes in how your family member eats, sleeps or plays.
The damages available depend on the facts, including who was burned and how, and the noneconomic limit applies to only some damages.
Subsection (5) of C.R.S. 13-21-102.5 keeps compensatory damages for physical impairment or disfigurement outside the statute's limits.
If a government body is responsible, separate maximum recovery amounts apply under C.R.S. 24-10-114, and those amounts are reset every fourth year.
An insurance company may argue points like these.
Shared fault in a negligence claim reduces a recovery by the injured person's percentage, and it bars recovery only when that share is equal to or greater than the other party's. We answer blame with fire origin analysis, maintenance records and expert testimony.
The Premises Liability Act covers a person legally responsible for the condition of real property, which can include a landlord. Status is the court's call. What the landlord should have known can matter for an invitee; a licensee's case generally turns on what the landlord actually knew (C.R.S. 13-21-115).
MedlinePlus states, "The most serious burns can be painless." A Life Care Plan documents the future treatment a burn may require.
Depending on the facts, compensation may come from one or more of these.
One family's case may draw on more than one of these at the same time.
Federal Heights is in Adams County, within the 17th Judicial District, and the Adams County Justice Center at 1100 Judicial Center Dr. in Brighton serves as the county's court. Where a lawsuit is actually filed turns on the details of your family's situation.
A child's scarring may be compensated as disfigurement, and subsection (5) of C.R.S. 13-21-102.5 puts compensatory damages for physical impairment or disfigurement beyond the statute's limits. The same law caps pain and suffering and other noneconomic damages at $1.5 million for claims arising on or after January 1, 2025, and medical bills fall outside that cap as economic losses.
Sharing some of the fault doesn't necessarily end the claim. Under C.R.S. 13-21-111, recovery in a negligence claim is allowed when the injured person's share of negligence is less than the other party's, and the damages are reduced by that share. If the injured person's share is equal to or greater, there is no recovery.
The landlord may be, depending on the facts. Colorado's premises law treats anyone legally responsible for a property's condition as a "landowner," and a landlord can qualify (C.R.S. 13-21-115). The court decides the injured person's status. An invitee may be compensated for hazards the owner knew of or reasonably should have known of, while a licensee generally must prove the owner actually knew. A faulty valve or thermostat could point to its manufacturer as well.
No. Our office is at 2701 Lawrence St., Suite 201, Denver, CO 80205. Families in Federal Heights reach us by phone at (303) 209-9395.
It can. Colorado applies distinct timing rules to minors, and they can alter when a filing deadline falls. Have a lawyer confirm your child's deadline based on the facts. If a public entity or one of its employees on the job may be involved, also ask the lawyer about the 182-day written notice rule (C.R.S. 24-10-109).
Possibly. A social guest is generally treated as a licensee. That generally means proving the homeowner had actual knowledge of the danger, under C.R.S. 13-21-115(4)(b), and the court makes the final call on status. If a claim is possible, the property owner's liability insurance may respond.
Start with the records from the emergency room and every follow-up visit. MedlinePlus states, "A burn's size can also be determined based on the total body surface area (TBSA) they cover." Add dated photos of the injury as it heals, copies of any written complaints to a landlord, fire department or paramedic records if responders came, the product or clothing involved, medical bills, pay stubs showing missed work, and a log of the care you provide.
Federal Heights
Statewide Practice Area
Denver Money Pages
It's More Than Money.
A call to (303) 209-9395, or a message through our contact page, is a way to learn where your family stands. We'll hear what happened, walk you through the Colorado rules that may matter, and give you a candid opinion.
Learn more on our Federal Heights personal injury lawyers page.
If you want to keep reading, see our Colorado burn injury attorney overview, our Denver burn injury lawyer page, and the pages for a Federal Heights car accident lawyer or a Federal Heights premises liability lawyer for more on crash and property claims.
CGH Injury Lawyers · 2701 Lawrence St., Suite 201, Denver, CO 80205
Attorney Advertising. CGH Injury Lawyers.
