Tag: Justice Maria Berkenkotter
-
Colorado justices receptive to allowing lawyers to ‘borrow’ allegations from elsewhere
Members of the Colorado Supreme Court seemed open on Tuesday to the idea that plaintiffs’ lawyers can use allegations made elsewhere to bolster their own clients’ claims, so long as the attorney first performs some degree of investigation into the “borrowed” assertions. Under Colorado’s rules for civil cases, attorneys must attest that the complaints they…
-
Justice Melissa Hart missing for third week as judiciary defends Colorado Supreme Court’s functioning
Justice Melissa Hart missed a third straight week of case considerations as of Monday, with the Colorado Supreme Court indicating she again did not participate in the court’s weekly decision-making about whether to accept or reject pending appeals. The Colorado Judicial Department told Colorado Politics last week that Hart has been on a leave of…
-
Appeals court reverses murder conviction after Denver judge violated public trial right
Colorado’s second-highest court reversed a defendant’s murder conviction on Thursday because a Denver judge violated his constitutional right to a public trial. Due to an unusually large jury pool at Edward R. Sandoval’s 2022 trial, Chief Judge Christopher J. Baumann did not allow observers to be present in his courtroom during jury selection. Although the…
-
Appeals court reverses murder conviction after Denver judge violated public trial right
Colorado’s second-highest court reversed a defendant’s murder conviction on Thursday because a Denver judge violated his constitutional right to a public trial. Due to an unusually large jury pool at Edward R. Sandoval’s 2022 trial, Chief Judge Christopher J. Baumann did not allow observers to be present in his courtroom during jury selection. Although the…
-
Colorado justices ponder whether rental car companies are also ‘insurers’
The Colorado Supreme Court considered last week whether car rental companies that offer insurance policies can also be deemed “insurers” who may be sued for their failure to pay out benefits on claims. Hertz Corp. argued it was not an insurance company based on a sequence of events in the 1990s. The Supreme Court ruled…
-
Colorado Supreme Court ponders when negative online reviews are insulated from lawsuits
—
by
Facebook Twitter WhatsApp SMS Email Print Copy article link Save Members of the Colorado Supreme Court considered last week whether a person’s vindictive motivations in posting a negative online review can nevertheless relate to a matter of public interest, and potentially shield the commentary from a defamation lawsuit. For the first time, the state’s highest…
-
Colorado Supreme Court questions 2020 change to child neglect laws
—
by
Facebook Twitter WhatsApp SMS Email Print Copy article link Save The Colorado Supreme Court pondered on Tuesday what the legislature meant to happen when it changed the state’s child neglect laws in 2020 to require more than a positive drug test at birth to deem a child neglected. The debate centered on the wording lawmakers chose to…
-
Colorado justices mull lawsuit over fossil fuel producers’ liability for alleged local climate change harms
—
by
Facebook Twitter WhatsApp SMS Email Print Copy article link Save Members of the Colorado Supreme Court considered on Tuesday whether to permit Boulder County and the city of Boulder to seek damages against two oil and gas producers for the harms they allegedly caused over multiple decades by concealing and misrepresenting the dangers of climate…
-
Colorado Supreme Court rejects ‘personhood’ for elephants at Colorado Springs’ Cheyenne Mountain Zoo
—
by
Facebook Twitter WhatsApp SMS Email Print Copy article link Save The Colorado Supreme Court followed in the footsteps of its counterparts on Tuesday and rejected the idea that an animal rights organization could petition for the release of five captive elephants in Colorado Springs. The Washington, D.C.-based Nonhuman Rights Project has unsuccessfully filed suit in multiple…
-
Colorado justices skeptical of unfairness allegations against Black Hills’ winter storm surcharge
—
by
Facebook Twitter WhatsApp SMS Email Print Copy article link Save Members of the Colorado Supreme Court on Wednesday appeared unmoved by claims that the Public Utilities Commission’s authorized method of charging customers for $23 million in natural gas purchases during a winter storm was unreasonable. In advance of Winter Storm Uri in February 2021, Black…