Civil Litigation

Coombe, Curry, Rich, Jarvis is one of the most successful Denver civil litigation firms. Many cases referred to our law practice by carrier clients involve complex litigation, and we are approved counsel or panel counsel for several insurance counselors. Our practice area extends beyond state lines to Arizona, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming. Our attorneys have also argued cases before numerous U.S. District Courts and U.S. Circuit Courts of Appeal, as well as in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.

Working Closely With Clients

CCRJ works closely with our clients, maintaining transparency and open lines of communication throughout our working relationship. We provide a full complement of staff to assist our clients with their diverse litigation needs. Many individual clients express apprehension about cost, but their fears are usually calmed by our honesty – and by our sincere efforts to develop effective litigation plans and budgets while keeping costs in line.

Alternative Dispute Resolution

Alternative dispute resolution, or ADR, is an effective means of resolving legal disputes, while also helping to minimize the costs of litigation and the inherent risks of taking cases to court. ADR plays a prominent role in our law practice, and in fact has become our predominant means of litigation resolution. We have extensive experience in both arbitration and mediation, along with long-established relationships with mediators in the Denver legal community. Our attorneys have an impressive track record of success in utilizing ADR to settle Denver civil litigation.

Extensive Network Of Contacts

We maintain an extensive network of subject matter experts and consultants to address the complexity and diversity of our clients’ needs require. Access to these experts, combined with the expertise of our attorneys, enables our firm to develop the most effective legal strategies for our clients. Call us today to learn how our Denver civil litigation team can help resolve your legal issues.

Areas Of Expertise

The educational and experiential backgrounds of the attorneys at Coombe, Curry, Rich, Jarvis are diverse. Many of the nation’s best law schools are represented, and several attorneys maintain active trial practices in multiple jurisdictions. Learn more about our areas of expertise.

Asbestos Case Management
CCRJ has served as national coordinating counsel to a major manufacturer involved in numerous asbestos related cases across the country. Managing a multi-thousand case docket requires the substantive knowledge of the litigation, in addition to management skills and the experience required to direct the litigation at a nationwide level. As national counsel, one selects the local counsel to represent the client in the various states, becomes familiar with the strengths and weaknesses of factual and legal issues in given jurisdictions and develops the overall litigation strategy. Further, the leader of a national docket evaluates the cases for merit, negotiates settlements, directs discovery issues and directs the activities of local counsel, which requires a high degree of risk-benefit analysis and being a good steward of the client’s best interest, reputation and resources. CCRJ is one of a handful of firms with the experience to effectively manage these thousands of case dockets and direct litigation at a national level.

Asbestos Defense
CCRJ has more than 30 years of experience in asbestos litigation in Colorado and across the United States. We have the necessary subject matter expertise in exposure issues, including knowledge of medical dose-response relationships, epidemiological studies on causation, and other exposure issues. The firm maintains an extensive library of asbestos-related matters, and remains current on court decisions impacting asbestos litigation as well as medical and scientific developments.

Asbestos Expert Witness
As the former general counsel of Johns Manville Corporation, CCRJ’s founding partner Dennis Markusson has more than 30 years of experience in asbestos defense litigation. He currently serves as national coordinating defense counsel for a company that formerly manufactured industrial products containing asbestos. He uses his expertise to work as an expert witness on asbestos issues and factors including insurance coverage, including reinsurance. He has a generation’s worth of knowledge of the relevant professional and medical literature on the true effects of industrial substances on individual health.

Bodily and Personal Injury
The attorneys at CCRJ manage a variety of bodily injury cases, including spinal injuries, closed head injuries, and wrongful death cases. Our attorneys have experience in numerous cases involving automobile and workplace accidents as well as premises liability.

Catastrophic/Major Claims
Our lawyers are known for their work with in-house counsel, insurance carrier senior claims managers, supervisors, and adjustors on sensitive, high-profile, high-exposure catastrophic loss and injury cases. We have handled hundreds of these cases in our careers and understand the importance of a prompt, thorough investigation, early assessment by legal counsel and, when needed, meticulous trial preparation.

Construction Defect and Contractor Liability
The attorneys at CCRJ possess technical expertise about mold, foundation movement, and other aspects of these types of claims. We are also knowledgeable about recent developments in Colorado law that affect construction defect litigation including the Colorado Construction Defect Reform Act (CDARA), the Homeowner Protection Act, and recent Colorado appellate court decisions. Our clients include real estate developers, builders, general contractors, subcontractors, architects, engineers, construction product manufacturers, construction professionals, and their insurers in complex construction defect litigation. The cases we have successfully defended range from single family home claims to complex litigation involving condominiums and commercial properties.

Dram Shop
Dram shop laws originate from a period when alcohol was sold in units called “drams,” one-eighth of a fluid ounce. These laws were designed to place liability on the operators of liquor stores, bars, restaurants, taverns, sports stadiums and other commercial operations selling alcohol. Colorado is one of a handful of states that have dram shop laws on the books. The experienced attorneys at CCRJ have extensive experience dealing with cases involving “social host” liability for injuries against employers and private individuals, as well as “obvious intoxication.”

Engineering Malpractice
The design, construction and maintenance of roadways, buildings and precision products requires significant care and expertise. When defects appear or product failures occur, those affected may claim architects or engineers are responsible, and attempt to hold them liable in court. As rapid advances in design and construction technology drive changes to industry regulations, architects’ and engineers’ exposure to professional malpractice claims have increased. Large and small firms alike should ensure that they continuously act to minimize this exposure, ensuring they can conduct business efficiently and confidently.

At Coombe, Curry, Rich, Jarvis, our team works diligently to stay abreast of these regulatory and legal developments. We provide architectural and engineering firms with proactive counsel to limit their liability exposure, and can offer skillful defense representation for those facing malpractice claims. Our experienced trial attorneys are well-versed in all these areas, and focus on the defense of professional liability claims in an industry where they have become so common that many owners and contractors consider professional liability policies to be just another source of project contingency funding.

Insurance Coverage
Our insurance defense attorneys regularly counsel clients in coverage disputes that involve most all types of risk, from health and life insurance to auto, homeowners and commercial coverage. We are familiar with the triggers for the duty to defend in Colorado, particularly when the duty is not clear from the complaint but the allegations do state a claim potentially or arguably within the policy’s coverage, or there is doubt as to whether a theory for coverage has been stated. In Colorado, many believe an insurer seeking to avoid its duty to defend bears a heavy burden compared to the laws of other states. That is why working with experienced insurance coverage defense counsel like the lawyers at CCRJ is your best move.

Premises Liability
At CCRJ, we have extensive experience handling premises liability cases. Like every state, Colorado premises liability law has its idiosyncrasies. We realize the value of having attorneys familiar with recent verdicts, settlements and appellate decisions involving the statutes are key to obtaining the best result possible. We have experience defending cases involving both the “eggshell plaintiff” claiming soft tissue injuries and those who have been seriously injured and disabled. That experience spans many industries and settings, including schools, shopping centers, convenience and retail stores, bars and restaurants, apartment complexes, office buildings, nursing homes, clinics and hospitals.

Product Liability
CCRJ’s product liability defense attorneys have years of proven experience successfully minimizing monetary losses and reputational damage brought against manufacturers and distributors of food, medical devices, industrial and consumer goods. Our lawyers have served as national coordinating counsel, and have tried cases both federal and state court while facing claims of manufacturing and product defects, design defects, and defective warnings or instructions. The firm’s founding partners are all former in-house counsel for a Fortune 500 industrial products manufacturer. We recognize that product liability claims can and do put businesses out of business. In all cases, we are sensitive that most states follow the “stream of commerce” model of liability, meaning that if a company or insured participated in placing the product into the “stream of commerce,” as a retailer or wholesaler, an attempt may be made to have it held liable for damages to the end user.

Toxic Torts
Toxic torts represents the intersection of law, science and medicine. Individual toxic tort claims generally arise from claims that illness or disorder is linked to exposure to a substance or agent, often years or decades earlier. Common substances that are involved with toxic tort cases include asbestos, beryllium, lead, silica, solvents and various hydrocarbons. The key to handling toxic tort cases is determining what a manufacturer should reasonably have been expected to understand about exposure to various agents at the time of exposure. The attorneys at CCRJ have developed extensive subject matter expertise in dealing with decades of toxic tort cases.

Trucking Law
Commercial trucking is highly regulated and involves complex disputes regarding insurance, business and contract negotiations, property damage claims and personal injury claims. The partners and associates at CCRJ have a detailed knowledge of Colorado law as well as federal statutes and administrative rules applicable to the trucking and common carrier industries. We use this expertise to provide our clients with the best possible results.