Chapter 10 - § 10.14 OFFERS TO COMPROMISE

• Jurisdiction: Colorado

§ 10.14 OFFERS TO COMPROMISE

Colorado

➢ General. Compromise and Offers to Compromise:

(a) Prohibited uses. Evidence of the following is not admissible on behalf of any party, when offered to prove liability for, invalidity of, or amount of a claim that was disputed as to validity or amount, or to impeach through a prior inconsistent statement or contradiction:

(1) furnishing or offering or promising to furnish[,] accepting or offering or promising to accept a valuable consideration in compromising or attempting to compromise the claim; and

(2) conduct or statements made in compromise negotiations regarding the claim, except when offered in a criminal case and the negotiations related to a claim by a public office or agency in the exercise of regulatory, investigative, or enforcement authority.

(b) Permitted uses. This rule does not require exclusion if the evidence is offered for purposes not prohibited by subdivision (a). Examples of permissible purposes include proving a witness's bias or prejudice; negating a contention of undue delay; and proving an effort to obstruct a criminal investigation or prosecution.

CRE 408.

➢ Admissibility. Whether statements contained in a letter were made in the course of a "settlement negotiation" or "compromise" is a question of fact, and there was evidentiary support that the letter was part of an effort to compromise the plaintiff's claims. Thus, the letter was properly excluded under CRE 408. H&H Distributors, Inc. v. BBC Int'l, Inc., 812 P.2d 659, 664 (Colo. App. 1990); see also Scott Co. of California v. MK-Ferguson Co., 832 P.2d 1000, 1006 (Colo. App. 1991), overruled in part on other grounds by Lewis v. Lewis, 189 P.3d 1134 (Colo. 2008); but see Hartman v. Cmty. Resp. Ctr., Inc., 87 P.3d 202, 206 (Colo. App. 2003) ("[T]he settlement agreement was admissible to explain the context of the testimony given by the executive

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