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Littleton, Colorado neighborhood. CGH Injury Lawyers represents dog bite victims in Littleton from our Denver office.
Littleton, Colorado

Littleton Dog Bite Lawyers Who Hold the Owner Responsible

If a dog seriously hurt you in Littleton, Colorado law may make the owner liable even if the dog had never bitten anyone before. C.R.S. 13-21-124 controls your case. CGH Injury Lawyers serves Littleton from our Denver office. You pay nothing unless we win.

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Serving Littleton from our Denver Office CGH Injury Lawyers 2701 Lawrence St., Suite 201 Denver, CO 80205 (303) 209-9395 Se habla español
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If a dog attacked you in Littleton, Colorado law may put full financial responsibility on the owner even if the dog had a spotless history. The outcome depends on how seriously you were hurt and what you were doing when the bite happened.

  • Colorado's dog bite statute, C.R.S. 13-21-124, creates a strict-liability track for serious bodily injuries. When that track applies, the owner's economic responsibility is established by the bite itself, with no need to prove the owner knew the dog was dangerous.
  • Non-economic damages such as pain and suffering, emotional distress, and permanent scarring are pursued under a negligence theory that the statute expressly preserves (C.R.S. 13-21-124(6)(a)). In a serious-injury case, both paths are typically pursued together.
  • The deadline to file most Colorado personal injury claims, including dog bites, is generally two years from the date of injury (C.R.S. 13-80-102). The attack should also be reported to Arapahoe County Animal Control regardless of whether the owner asks you not to.

CGH Injury Lawyers does not have a Littleton office. We serve Littleton dog bite victims from our Denver office at 2701 Lawrence St., Suite 201, and we travel to you. We handle the insurance claim and the negotiation, and we try the case in the 18th Judicial District when an insurer refuses a fair settlement. There is no fee unless we win.

The law that governs your case

Colorado's dog bite statute, C.R.S. 13-21-124, and what it means for Littleton victims

Colorado does not follow a pure one-bite rule, and it is not a pure strict-liability state either. The dog bite statute sets up two separate liability tracks. Which one applies to your Littleton case depends almost entirely on how badly you were hurt.

The core of the statute states: a person who suffers serious bodily injury or death from being bitten by a dog while lawfully on public or private property may bring a civil action to recover economic damages against the dog owner, regardless of the viciousness or dangerous propensities of the dog or the owner's knowledge of them (C.R.S. 13-21-124(2)).

Two facts must be established for the strict-liability track to apply. First, your injury must meet Colorado's definition of serious bodily injury. Second, you must have been lawfully on the property where the attack occurred. Satisfy both conditions and the owner is liable for your economic damages even if this was a first bite from a dog with no prior history of aggression.

Littleton's residential streets, parks along the South Platte River Trail, and Chatfield State Park approaches generate the kinds of encounters where dog attacks happen: joggers, cyclists, postal carriers, and visitors who are lawfully present on private or public property and have no warning before a dog bites.

Strict liability vs. negligence

The two liability tracks and which one applies to your Littleton bite

The single most important question in your Littleton dog bite case is which track applies. One is far easier to win. The dividing line is the severity of the injury.

Track 1: Strict liability for serious injuries

  • Applies when the bite causes serious bodily injury or death (C.R.S. 13-21-124(2)).
  • You do not have to prove the owner knew the dog was dangerous or that the dog had bitten before.
  • The bite itself, plus your lawful presence and the severity of the injury, establishes liability for economic damages.
  • A first-time bite is treated identically to a bite from a dog with a prior record. The dog's history is not a defense.
  • Recovery on this track is limited to economic losses. Non-economic damages require a separate negligence theory.

Track 2: Negligence for lesser injuries and non-economic harm

  • Applies when the injury does not meet the serious bodily injury threshold, or when you are pursuing pain and suffering damages.
  • You must show the owner knew or should have known the dog was dangerous (C.R.S. 13-21-124(6)(a)).
  • Prior bites, aggressive behavior documented with animal control, or witness accounts of threatening behavior are the kinds of evidence that prove it.
  • The statute expressly preserves all negligence claims that exist outside the strict-liability track, so this path remains fully open.
  • In serious injury cases, both tracks are pursued together to reach every category of compensable harm.

What qualifies as serious bodily injury under Colorado law?

Colorado's dog bite statute borrows the serious bodily injury definition from C.R.S. 18-1-901(3)(p). That definition covers injuries carrying a substantial risk of death, serious permanent disfigurement, or protracted loss or impairment of a body part or organ, and certain fractures and burns. A facial scar that does not fade, nerve damage leaving lasting weakness, loss of use of a finger, or multiple puncture wounds requiring reconstructive surgery are the kinds of injuries that typically meet this threshold. Whether your specific injury qualifies is a legal judgment we make after reviewing your medical records.

Owner defenses

Defenses dog owners raise in Littleton cases, and how we answer them

C.R.S. 13-21-124(5) lists the situations where an owner is not liable under the statute. Insurers reach for these defenses quickly. Understanding what each one actually requires is how a valid Littleton claim stays alive.

  1. "You were trespassing"

    The strict-liability track protects people who are lawfully on the property at the time of the bite. Colorado defines lawful presence broadly: it includes anyone performing a legal duty, such as a letter carrier on a Littleton residential route, and anyone present by the owner's express or implied invitation (C.R.S. 13-21-124(4)). An unlocked gate, an open yard without posted warnings, or an invitation to visit are all facts that support lawful presence. The statute bars liability only where the property is clearly posted with "no trespassing" or "beware of dog" signs. Exactly how and where you entered, and what signals the property sent, are the factual questions we investigate.

  2. "You provoked the dog"

    Provocation under the statute requires that the person knowingly provoked the dog (C.R.S. 13-21-124(5)(d)). Reaching down to pet a dog, jogging past one on the South Platte River Trail, or flinching when a dog charges are not provocation in the legal sense. We use witness accounts, video from trail cameras or Ring doorbells, and your own description of what happened to prevent ordinary, reasonable conduct from being recast as something that absolves the owner of responsibility.

  3. "The dog was a working animal"

    The statute carves out bites involving dogs used by peace officers or military personnel on duty, as well as dogs working as hunting, herding, farm, ranch, or predator-control animals on the owner's property (C.R.S. 13-21-124(5)). There is also an exemption for bites against veterinary workers, groomers, and similar professionals in the course of their duties. These carve-outs are narrow and almost never fit an ordinary pet that attacks a neighbor, a park visitor, or a child at a Littleton school event.

Compensation

What you can recover after a Littleton dog bite

A dog bite is not just a medical bill. Colorado law recognizes two broad categories of damages, and which ones you can reach depends on which liability track your case sits on. In a serious-injury case both categories are in play.

Economic damages (no cap)

  • Emergency room care, surgery, and follow-up treatment
  • Reconstructive and cosmetic surgery for scarring and disfigurement
  • Rabies prophylaxis and wound care
  • Lost wages and lost earning capacity
  • Future medical and rehabilitation costs
  • Out-of-pocket expenses tied directly to the attack

Non-economic damages and physical impairment

  • Pain and suffering (pursued under the preserved negligence theory, C.R.S. 13-21-124(6)(a))
  • Emotional distress and PTSD, which are common after dog attacks and frequently require ongoing treatment
  • Permanent scarring and disfigurement
  • Loss of enjoyment of life
  • Compensation for physical impairment and disfigurement, which are not subject to any cap under C.R.S. 13-21-102.5(5) and often represent the highest-value category in serious bite cases

The strict-liability track in C.R.S. 13-21-124(2) recovers economic damages only. To reach pain and suffering and emotional distress, the victim pursues the negligence theory the statute preserves in C.R.S. 13-21-124(6)(a). In a serious Littleton dog bite case, both paths run at the same time. We structure the claim from the beginning so no category of harm is left off the table.

Colorado's modified comparative fault rule applies to dog bite claims. Under C.R.S. 13-21-111, you can recover as long as you were less than 50 percent at fault for the incident. If a jury finds you 50 percent or more at fault, you recover nothing. This is the reason insurers work hard to characterize your conduct as provocation or trespass. The line between legal defense and manufactured excuse is exactly where your lawyer's work begins.

Local Knowledge

Littleton courts. Littleton trauma care. Where dog attacks happen in Littleton.

A Littleton dog bite case runs through Littleton's real places: the trail where the attack happened, the hospital that treated you, and the courthouse where your case may be filed. Here is the ground we work on.

Courthouse

18th Judicial District, Arapahoe County District Court

A Littleton dog bite lawsuit above the county-court jurisdictional limit is filed in the 18th Judicial District, Arapahoe County District Court. That court operates at two locations: the Arapahoe County Courthouse at 1790 West Littleton Blvd, Littleton, CO 80120, and the Arapahoe County Justice Center at 7325 S. Potomac Street, Centennial, CO 80112. We file and try cases at both locations and know the local rules, the jury pool, and the defense firms that regularly appear in Arapahoe County.

Trauma Care

AdventHealth Littleton, Level II Trauma Center

Serious dog bite injuries in Littleton are often treated at AdventHealth Littleton (formerly Littleton Adventist Hospital), at 7700 South Broadway, Littleton, CO. AdventHealth Littleton is a Level II Trauma Center designated by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment. Bite wounds to the face, neck, and hands that require surgery or reconstructive care are handled here, and the medical records generated at this facility document the full scope of your injury. We obtain and analyze those records from the first visit forward. Plastic surgery and nerve repair consultations at AdventHealth Littleton or UCHealth Highlands Ranch are also part of the medical record chain we build for a serious-scarring case.

Where Dog Attacks Happen in Littleton

South Platte River Trail, Chatfield State Park approaches, and Littleton residential corridors

Dog attacks in Littleton occur on the South Platte River Trail, a regional multi-use path connecting Littleton to downtown Denver and Waterton Canyon, where off-leash dogs and cyclists and joggers regularly interact at choke points along the US-85 corridor. Chatfield State Park, which draws more than one million visitors per year, is another documented exposure zone on the SH-121 and Wadsworth Boulevard approach, particularly in warmer months when the park is crowded. Residential streets throughout Littleton's southeast neighborhoods, along South Broadway near AdventHealth Littleton, and in subdivisions bordering Ken Caryl Ranch produce the neighbor-on-neighbor and mail carrier dog bite scenarios that the statute was designed to address. We know these locations and use that knowledge to establish the factual record from the start.

After the attack

What to do after a dog bite in Littleton

The steps you take in the hours and days after a Littleton dog bite directly affect the strength of your claim. Here is the sequence we walk every client through.

  1. Get medical care right away

    Dog bites carry serious infection risk, including risk of rabies transmission. Get examined immediately at AdventHealth Littleton at 7700 S. Broadway or a nearby urgent care. Do not wait to see whether the wound heals on its own. Deep puncture wounds, wounds to the face or hands, and injuries involving tearing or avulsion require professional wound care. Keep every medical record, photograph, and discharge instruction.

  2. Photograph injuries and the scene immediately

    Take photos of the wound before and after cleaning. Photograph the location of the attack, the property where it happened, any signage (or the absence of it), and the dog if it is safe to do so. Video from Ring doorbells, trail cameras along the South Platte River Trail path, or security cameras at nearby businesses on South Broadway or Santa Fe Drive may capture the attack or confirm the dog's behavior. That footage can overwrite within 24 to 72 hours. We act quickly to preserve it.

  3. Report the bite to Arapahoe County Animal Control

    Report the attack to Arapahoe County Animal Control even if the owner asks you not to. Reporting creates an official record that identifies the dog and the owner, triggers a quarantine period to assess rabies risk, and feeds the dangerous-dog designation process that may be relevant to your case. The official report also helps us confirm the dog's history and prior complaints. Do not skip this step out of consideration for the owner.

  4. Identify the dog and the owner

    Get the owner's name, address, and phone number at the scene if possible. Ask whether the dog is licensed and vaccinated. Ask for the name of the owner's homeowner or renter insurer. If the owner leaves before you can gather this information, neighbors, the animal control report, and property records can help us identify them.

  5. Call us before speaking to any insurer

    The owner's homeowner or renter insurer may contact you within days of the bite. Do not give a recorded statement, sign any release, or accept any initial payment before speaking with an attorney. Early settlement offers are typically made before the full scope of your scarring, nerve damage, or psychological injury is known. Call (303) 209-9395 first.

  6. We build and file your claim

    We confirm the animal control report, identify the homeowner or renter policy, gather AdventHealth Littleton medical records, and document all categories of harm including scarring, nerve damage, and the psychological impact of the attack. If the insurer refuses a fair settlement, we file in Arapahoe County District Court and present your case to a jury.

Where the money comes from

You are not suing your neighbor. You are making their insurer honor the policy.

The most common reason Littleton dog bite victims hesitate to pursue a claim is that the dog belongs to someone they know. Understanding how a dog bite settlement is actually paid usually changes that calculation.

  • In most cases you file against the owner's homeowner or renter liability coverage, not against their personal savings or assets. Most Colorado homeowner and renter policies include liability coverage that responds to dog bite claims, though some insurers exclude certain breeds or limit coverage amounts.
  • We confirm the policy terms before assuming anything. If the dog is in a Littleton rental, the landlord's policy may also be relevant depending on what the landlord knew about the dog.
  • The insurer pays the settlement or judgment up to the policy limits. The purpose of liability insurance is to protect both the injured person and the policyholder from the full personal financial impact of a claim.
  • The insurance company will contest the claim aggressively regardless of your relationship with the owner. Having counsel is how you make the insurer meet its obligation under the policy it was paid to provide.
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Your team

The team handling your Littleton dog bite case

CGH Injury Lawyers is a eight-attorney Colorado firm founded in 2016, formerly Cheney Galluzzi & Howard. Managing Partner Kevin Cheney is a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA) and has tried over 25 cases to verdict. Timothy G. Tarr has been recognized by Best Lawyers every year since 2023. Every Littleton dog bite case is handled by a licensed Colorado attorney, not a paralegal. CGH Injury Lawyers does not have a Littleton office. We serve Littleton clients from 2701 Lawrence St., Suite 201, Denver, CO 80205, and meet you where it is convenient.

ABOTA member on the team Tim Tarr: Best Lawyers in America since 2023 Over 25 cases to verdict Statewide Colorado coverage Bilingual EN / ES Free consultation No fee unless we win

Frequently asked questions

Frequently asked questions about Littleton dog bite cases

Does CGH Injury Lawyers have an office in Littleton?

No. CGH Injury Lawyers has one office, at 2701 Lawrence St., Suite 201, Denver, CO 80205. We serve Littleton dog bite clients from that Denver office, file cases in the 18th Judicial District at Arapahoe County District Court, and meet you where it is convenient for you. Reach us at (303) 209-9395 or start a free case review online.

Does the dog have to have bitten someone before for me to have a claim?

No. Colorado's dog bite statute rejects the one-bite rule for serious injuries. Under the strict-liability track in C.R.S. 13-21-124(2), the dog's history is irrelevant as long as your injury qualifies as serious bodily injury and you were lawfully on the property. The owner is liable for your economic damages even if the dog had a completely clean record. Prior bites matter only on the negligence track, where you are pursuing pain and suffering or the injury did not reach the serious bodily injury threshold.

How long do I have to file a dog bite claim in Littleton?

The deadline for most personal injury claims in Colorado, including dog bites, is generally two years from the date of injury (C.R.S. 13-80-102). If the victim is a minor, the limitations clock generally does not begin until the child turns 18, but evidence should still be preserved from the start. Even with two years on the clock, waiting is dangerous because witness memories fade, camera footage overwrites, and animal control records may not be preserved indefinitely. Call us as soon as possible after the bite.

Can I recover pain and suffering for a dog bite in Colorado?

Often yes, but not through the strict-liability track alone. C.R.S. 13-21-124(2) limits the strict-liability claim to economic damages. Pain and suffering, emotional distress, and PTSD from the attack are non-economic damages pursued under the negligence theory that the statute expressly preserves in C.R.S. 13-21-124(6)(a). In a serious Littleton dog bite case, both the strict-liability and negligence paths are pursued at the same time to reach every category of harm the law allows.

Where would my Littleton dog bite lawsuit be filed?

A Littleton civil lawsuit above the county-court jurisdictional limit would be filed in the 18th Judicial District, Arapahoe County District Court. That court operates at two locations: the Arapahoe County Courthouse at 1790 West Littleton Blvd, Littleton, CO 80120, and the Arapahoe County Justice Center at 7325 S. Potomac Street, Centennial, CO 80112. We handle 18th Judicial District cases at both locations directly and are familiar with the local rules and jury pool.

What if I was partly responsible for the dog attack?

Colorado follows a modified comparative negligence rule under C.R.S. 13-21-111. You can recover as long as you are found less than 50 percent at fault for the incident. If you are found 50 percent or more at fault, you recover nothing. Your damages are reduced by whatever percentage of fault is assigned to you. This is why insurers work hard to characterize your conduct as provocation and why having a lawyer who counters that narrative from the start determines how much you actually recover.

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CGH Injury Lawyers · Serving Littleton from 2701 Lawrence St., Suite 201, Denver, CO 80205