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Why Choose Ready Law?

I have successfully recovered millions of dollars for Colorado clients across a range of personal injury, wrongful death, and civil rights cases. If you have a serious injury that was caused by someone else, you probably find yourself near the beginning of what could be a long path to full and fair compensation. You should be looking for someone you get along with well, someone who is easy to communicate with, and someone who is willing to learn about your life and your losses, to lead you toward full compensation for what was wrongfully taken from you. The road to your best outcome will have so many exit opportunities along the way. If we work together, I can help you stay on course. I have that leader and guide for many injured people and their families. You don’t have to take my word for it. Have a look at what some of my injury clients have had to say (internal link).

What types of cases does Ready Law handle?

At Ready Law I help select clients with cases involving wrongful injury and death. I am selective about who I work with, and I believe my clients tend to be selective about who they work with too. I am not selective to drive interest or to be elitist. I have represented all kinds of people who needed help with a huge range of causes across Colorado. However, I have come to believe that for me, personally, I get a lot of satisfaction and motivation from being a true believer in my chosen causes. That means all of them. I am motivated to help people who have been wronged, have had their lives disrupted, and are now being pushed around and taken advantage of. Fortunately for me, I am able to work with people I like, and for causes I believe in. My clients want and deserve fair outcomes, and I find joy and satisfaction in helping them get those fair outcomes. It feels right to me. These are just starting points for how I decide whether to accept a case, but they have become non-negotiable starting points, and I am a better advocate as a result.
Call or text to see if we are a good fit. If I am not able to help you for whatever reason, I may know someone else who can. You have nothing to lose by reaching out.

What is negligence in the context of Colorado personal injury law?

In Colorado, negligence generally occurs when a a person, government, company, etc., fails to act with the level of care that a reasonable person would exercise under similar circumstances. To successfully sue for negligence, the person who was harmed will need to prove that the wrongdoer had some sort of duty to act reasonably, and their actions must have caused the harm or loss to the person who is seeking justice. In personal injury cases, negligence is often a key factor in determining liability. However, there are exceptions, and sometimes Colorado law imposes liability under a different set of rules.

What are economic and non-economic damages in personal injury cases?

Economic damages are financial losses caused by an injury, which are usually quantified in advance for the jury. Common examples are medical expenses, lost wages, and property damage. Sometimes it helps to think of economic damages as something a person could show invoices or receipts for. Sometimes jurors view economic damages as more straight-forward because someone who is not involved in the case has already calculated their value.
Non-economic damages, on the other hand, are losses like pain and suffering, emotional distress, and loss of enjoyment of life. Non-economic damages are compensation for harms that are every bit as real as economic damages, and they are constantly under attack from insurance companies and wrongdoers who have a strong interest in selling the lie that your pain has no value.

Are there caps on damages in Colorado personal injury cases?

Yes. Colorado law caps some damages, and does not allow us to inform jurors of that fact. Essentially, the law requires courts to ask jurors to determine, based on all the facts and evidence in front of them, what the fair and correct amount of compensation is. Jurors are NOT told that some lawmakers decades ago decided that already, at least when it comes to certain types of damages. Caps are typically only applicable to non-economic damages. Fortunately, those caps also adjust every couple of years for inflation. As of the time of this writing, the non-economic cap for most Colorado personal injury cases is $642,180. Courts have some discretion to increase that cap based upon the evidence.

How long do I have to file a personal injury lawsuit in Colorado?

Most lawsuits involving injuries suffered in a motor vehicle collision must be filed within three years in Colorado. However, there are earlier deadlines for different types of cases. Many are two years after the injury, and some cases must be filed with the court no more than a year after the injury. Cases involving the government can come with notice requirements that are even shorter, and failure to meet any of these requirements can result in a complete loss of the claim. Given the consequences of being wrong on this, do not attempt to determine the deadlines applicable to your claim and your case without talking to an attorney. If you have a question about whether there is still time to file your claim, or how soon you must do so, or how much time you have to file a formal lawsuit, do not delay. Contact an attorney to discuss the specific facts of your case.

Will my personal injury case go to trial?

Most do not, but yours could. The insurance companies involved in personal injury cases have a strong self-serving interest in seeing what they can get away with. They sell insurance by promising to pay when they’re needed. When the time comes to keep that promise, the often prefer to argue and avoid their responsibility to pay full value for a loss. We always do everything we can to show them that they aren’t going to get away with that. Sometimes we need to have a jury show them instead. If we consistently accept whatever an insurance company decides to offer, the outcomes quickly become very unfair for everyone, including you. If the insurance companies are not concerned about losing at trial, they would simply refuse to pay, or deliberately underpay, valid claims. Trial is not a threat. It is our right. Fortunately, the justice system is not set up to ask the wrongdoer how much they think is owed, and just leave the outcome at that. We are entitled to present your true damages and losses to our neighbors (jurors), who are generally people just like us who want to see the right thing done.

Getting your losses in front of those jurors can be a long process that will, at various points along the way, require your participation, and your commitment to a fair outcome. There will be countless opportunities to settle your case along the way, for some amount the insurance company is willing to pay. If you work with Ready Law, we will seriously consider every reasonable offer, and my injured clients always have the option to accept any offer the insurance company makes. When insurance companies try to take advantage of people for their own profit, and when those people choose not to allow them to get away with that, we turn to jury trials to get a fair and just outcome.

What can I expect during a free case consultation?

Useful information. There is no obligation to hire me after we meet. I almost always have beneficial information to provide you about how Colorado law and courts handle the type of case you are considering pursuing. We can discuss potential strengths and weaknesses of your case based on your specific facts. I can provide you an explanation and overview of the pre-litigation injury claims process, as well as what you can likely expect if your case requires a formal lawsuit. We can cover the risks of pursuing a claim and lawsuit, and we can go into as much detail as you like about how I get paid if we end up working together, the difference between case costs and attorney fees, etc. One of the main purposes of a consultation is that you have questions and I am willing to provide you information that can help you answer those questions without changing you anything for the consultation.

A casual, comfortable discussion. Who actually wants a stuffy and unapproachable lawyer? Maybe that is exactly the kind of attorney mega-companies want to have supervising their mega-mergers. If you are looking for someone who can connect with a jury and tell your story, you might consider seeking an attorney who can connect with you and who cares about your story. In that position, I would look for someone who is energetic, capable, and excited about the work. However, I would also want to work with someone I felt comfortable with on a human-to-human level.
Your personal injury attorney should be someone you feel comfortable trusting with your cause, and your questions, and your feeling about how your life has been impacted. What better way to find out whether that kind of connection exists, than simply meeting and talking about what happened to you, and what you might be able to do about it.

No obligation to continue. Almost every person who meets with me for a free consultation tells me at some point that they found it helpful. I do not push people to hire me, or even to pursue their case. I am happy to simply meet and talk about your injuries. The decision to pursue a case, or to pursue a case with me, is entirely yours.

How are personal injury attorneys paid?

Most personal injury attorneys get paid a percentage of whatever they recover for you. At Ready Law, my fee is 33.3% of the total amount recovered. Some law firms charge more if a case goes into litigation, and 40% fees are not uncommon. I charge a third for my fee, so my clients are not punished with a higher percentage fee if a case takes a long time or goes all the way to trial. I charge the same percentage.

This system benefits society, courts, attorneys and you. Check out my blog post on this subject by clicking here.

There are case costs involved in any case, which is not income for the attorney. Case costs are just expenses that we paid to get your medical records, pay experts, etc. During my free consultation I explain the difference, and how everything is paid . For purposes of this FAQ, you should know that you get to start your case without paying anything up front.

Can I handle my personal injury case on my own?

Yes.

How long will it take to resolve my personal injury case?

Sometimes this can be answered by estimating how long your medical treatment will take and adding a couple of months to gather records and negotiate with the insurance company. Many cases are more complex, require longer negotiations, involve unstable medical conditions and monitoring of ongoing treatment and symptoms over time. Some cases require expert evaluations and future care projections, and so on. Some cases require formal litigation because the insurance company doesn’t want to pay what it should. Those cases often take years.

Justice involves a diligent pursuit of full and fair compensation. Time should never be wasted, and your attorney should always be motivated to move your case forward. However, there are very good reasons for some cases to take longer than others. There are many firms that prioritize faster settlements and a much higher volume of cases. For some people, any quick outcome is acceptable. If getting the fastest possible outcome is more important to you than getting your best outcome, you may find another Colorado personal injury law firm to be a better fit for you. The goal at Ready Law is to get your best outcome.

Can I still recover compensation if I was partially at fault for my injuries?

Yes. However, you should expect your compensation to be reduced by the percentage of fault the jury assigns to you. In Colorado, if you are assigned more than 49% of the fault for your injuries, you will recover nothing. This rule is known as comparative negligence, and it allows injured parties to recover damages even if they were partially responsible for the injury.

What should I do if the insurance company offers me a settlement?

The initial offer usually does not fully compensate you for your injuries and losses. You may not even know what your full injuries and losses are when the first offer comes in. Insurance companies know this, and some see quick offers as a way for them to avoid paying what they really owe. Ready Law offers free consultations. We can talk about your case, your injuries, your treatment, and your options without any cost or obligation to you. If you choose not to speak with me about your case, at least speak to another Colorado personal injury lawyer. People who have help with their cases generally recover more, and the insurance company’s first offer is rarely full or fair compensation.

I am not a greedy person, and I certainly don’t want to have to sue anyone. How can I make sure I’m not being taken advantage of?

Short answer: Get help. You have the attitude and goals of my ideal clients, and you should call me. This question is basically the song of my people. 🙂 I know you just want to be treated fairly, but you should know that if your injuries are serious, you are unlikely to be treated fairly if you do not get some help.

Not the short answer: The story sold by insurance companies and their lobbyists is that people who sue are greedy. People who sue are fakers and takers. The insurance companies have entire law departments, and many of them have multiple law firms in the Denver area who are fully committed to convincing juries that injured people are lying about their injuries, seeking a payment they shouldn’t get, or are just wrong about what caused their injuries (they argue the true cause is anyone or anything they wouldn’t have to pay for). They sell the story that the people who stand up for themselves are fakers and takers.

These companies selling that story to the public are doing that to profit at your expense. They tell a version of that insurance story in courtrooms around the country every day. They tell that story about thousands of people just like you. Now they are preparing to tell that insurance story about you, too. Do not make it easier for them to profit from their insurance story by accepting it yourself. Do not make it easier for them to take advantage of your loss by being shy about standing up for yourself, or by hesitating to pursue what you know to be fair. Do not empower them to profit off the losses of others tomorrow, by allowing them to take advantage of you today.

Our joint mission has nothing to do with dancing in a shower of cash or so-called “jackpot justice”. When we look away from insurance smoke and mirrors and toward truth (which is clearer because it is real), we know you never wanted to be hurt. None of the people I help are takers or fakers. None of my clients ever wanted to have to sue anyone. Most hate the idea. If personal injury verdicts were a lottery, which the insurance companies want to portray them to be, not one of my clients would have bought a ticket. But now that your injuries and all the life impacts that come with them have been thrust upon you, the insurance company may see an opportunity for financial gain. Sometimes they gamble by refusing to pay what they promised to pay when they sold the policy and when they collected payments on that policy. They win if you allow them to. Don’t buy into the insurance story. Let’s tell the truth instead.

I hope this FAQ answers some common questions about personal injury cases in Colorado. If you have a question that is not answered here, call 303-339-8846, or text me now.