Colorado Business Litigation Lawyer Blog

Playboy magazine recently announced that the University of Colorado in Boulder edged out Penn State as the nation's number 1 party school. Playboy bases that ranking upon observations of current and former students, feedback from Playboy campus representatives, and input of fans on Playboy's social media pages.

The 50-something medical marijuana dispensaries and four beer breweries in Boulder were factors in CU's high ranking. About one-half of the school's over 24,000 undergraduates turn out for the annual 4/20 smoke-out on school grounds. Other factors include the school's male-to-female ratio and its winning percentage of sports teams. The school earned bonus points for the campus' proximity to beaches, ski slopes, and Colorado's hot music scene.

We don't really know to what extent the "party school" reputation affects a prospective student's decision when college application time rolls around, but we do have a strong suspicion that parents and guardians may not be thrilled about CU's party-school accolade. On the positive side, students interested in the art and study of debate will have a perfect opportunity to test out their skills of persuasion on either side of this issue.

The argument may go something like: "Sure, Dad, CU may have a party reputation, but think of the advantage I'll have over the other students: with half of them high and the rest hung over, I'm sure to be top of the class (being that I'm personally not into such seedy things). I'll also take extra care to find a roommate who's a straight arrow, I promise."

Continue reading "C.U. Named Nation's No. 1 Party School: Good News or Bad News?" »

When this blog was first started, it was clearly understood that the subject was to be about legal issues of general interest. After all, why have a website promoting a Colorado-based law firm if the purpose is to entertain with tales of whimsy?

This law firm, which primarily represents victims of defective and unreasonably dangerous consumer products pretty much all over the U.S., depends mostly on word of mouth referrals from hopefully satisfied clients and their families and friends, and referrals from other lawyers. We don’t advertise in brochures, newspapers or magazines, or on radio, television and the like, or on billboards or buses or bus stop benches. Still, we don’t criticize lawyers who do.

But isn’t advertising on the web the same as any other form of self promotion? Not exactly. It seems to us to be just a little less irritating. And it’s a whole lot cheaper. But more importantly, it cuts out the middleman. Why should a person who is looking for a competent and experienced lawyer on a matter of importance have to rely on content that may be filtered through an advertising agency? We should be able to tell prospective clients about our experience, what our practice emphasizes, and what our track record is. We expect you to ask us questions and to ask around about us. We believe our national reputation will withstand your scrutiny.

That being said, stay tuned. Every so often, we’ll continue to inform about legal issues of interest to many of you. When we stray from that objective, we hope we can still say something interesting, or at least entertaining.

After all, don’t most of us already have enough serious matters to think about?

Continue reading "What is the Purpose of This Blog?" »

Heidi Hemmet, an investigative reporter for Fox31 KDVR.com reported March 17, 2010, retired workers at Denver Water in Colorado say they buried hazardous waste near several homes and schools 20 years ago. One former worker says he and a number of his co-workers were ordered by the Denver Water manager to bury "cement asbestos, radiation asphalt" and other toxic chemicals at the Foothills Water Treatment Facility near Titan Road and Santa Fe in Douglas County.

The workers claim they "crushed the asbestos piping, spread it out on the land and covered it with dirt. It was never properly capped." The workers also say they suffer from a wide range of illnesses believed to have been caused by exposure to asbestos. They are concerned that digging at the site could be releasing asbestos particles into the air and contaminating the soil and groundwater.

Some homeowners in the area said they thought they were buying homes near open space, and that if they knew about the contamination they never would have purchased property in that area. Workers say a drain flushes ground water from the site past dozens of houses and empties out just below Roxborough Intermediate School.

A statement by Denver Water to Fox31 says in part that "burying of CA (cement-asbestos) pipe may have occurred, but if it did, it was per standard practice at the time." In 2008, when workers first raised the issue with Denver Water, a company spokesperson advised they would conduct a thorough investigation if and when the workers brought forth specific details about alleged activities. The Denver Water Board says it will investigate the allegations. The state health department advises it may be prompted to investigate if it receives enough complaints from the community.

Those wishing to file a claim should call 303-692-3322.

Be on the lookout for a wiener dog named “Spork,” especially if you work for a veterinarian.

Deborah Takahara of KDVR.com reports on February 23 that the 10-year old dog’s owners have been charged by the City of Lafayette, Colorado, with keeping a vicious dog because Spork bit a veterinary technician on the chin during oral surgery (on the dog).

The dog’s owners say that Spork is so cool he cries and won’t sleep without a blanket over him. They also say that the veterinarian tech got too close to Spork’s face with some scissors, which scared the dog. Who knows? Maybe Spork just wanted to keep his teeth intact.

State law does not allow people who work with animals to file vicious dog charges. There is no such exemption under Lafayette’s municipal code.

If the owners are convicted, Spork may suffer the ultimate penalty of euthanasia, a fate which the owners say they will spend their life’s savings to prevent.

All attempts at humor aside, I hope the person bitten has a speedy recovery.

Read more on Spork: "Lafayette Defends Prosecution of Spork the 'Vicious' Wiener Dog"