Littleton Wrongful Death Lawyers Who Fight for Your Family

Colorado follows a strict standing hierarchy under the Wrongful Death Act (C.R.S. 13-21-201 through 13-21-204). In the first year after the death, only the surviving spouse may file. In the second year, both the surviving spouse and the children may file. Parents may file only if there is no surviving spouse or children. Siblings gained standing under HB 24-1472 but only when the deceased left no surviving spouse, children, or parents. Because standing is time-sensitive, identify the correct claimant and consult an attorney as early as possible.

The general deadline to file a Colorado wrongful death claim is two years from the date of death under C.R.S. 13-80-102. Claims against a Colorado government entity are different: the Colorado Governmental Immunity Act requires a formal notice of claim within 182 days after the date of discovery of the injury before any lawsuit can proceed. Do not wait to confirm which deadline applies to your Littleton case.

Solatium under C.R.S. 13-21-203.5 is a fixed statutory payment a surviving spouse (and in some cases parents) can elect for grief and loss of companionship instead of proving those losses at trial. For claims accruing on or after January 1, 2024, the certified amount is $135,990, paid in addition to economic damages once liability is established. Families often choose it as a privacy shield, because it avoids the invasive discovery into the quality of the marriage that a traditional non-economic damages claim can invite. Electing solatium does not reduce or limit economic damages, which remain fully recoverable. Whether to elect depends on the facts of your case, and we walk through the choice in the free consultation.

Recoverable damages include economic losses such as lost future income and benefits, medical expenses incurred before the death, funeral and burial costs, and the value of household services the deceased provided. Economic damages are not subject to a cap. Non-economic damages such as grief, loss of companionship, and loss of consortium are subject to a statutory cap under C.R.S. 13-21-203, with the applicable cap depending on when the claim accrued. The cap is eliminated entirely if the death resulted from a felonious killing. Punitive damages may be available when the death resulted from gross negligence or willful and wanton conduct.

Colorado's comparative fault rule still allows recovery as long as the deceased was less than 50 percent at fault. The total award is reduced by the percentage of fault attributed to the deceased. Insurers and defendants routinely inflate that percentage to reduce payouts. We challenge every fault assessment with the available evidence from the incident scene, including crash reconstruction, witness accounts, and footage from Littleton corridors such as C-470 and US-85.

A wrongful death claim is brought by surviving family members for the losses they personally suffered, such as lost financial support and loss of companionship. A survival action is brought on behalf of the deceased's estate for losses the deceased suffered before passing, such as pre-death medical expenses and pain and suffering during any period of survival. Both claims may be filed together to pursue full compensation for both the family and the estate. We assess which claims apply in every Littleton case we review.

Littleton is the county seat of Arapahoe County and falls within the 18th Judicial District. Civil wrongful death cases arising in Arapahoe County are heard at the Arapahoe County Courthouse at 1790 West Littleton Blvd, Littleton CO 80120, and at the Arapahoe County Justice Center at 7325 S. Potomac Street, Centennial CO 80112. Because Littleton's city limits extend into portions of Jefferson County and Douglas County, the proper filing venue depends on where the fatal incident occurred. We confirm jurisdiction before any complaint is filed.