Chapter 8 CONCLUSION

• Jurisdiction: Colorado

Chapter 8 CONCLUSION

The Ski Safety Act establishes the duties, rights, and liabilities of skiers and ski area operators, and serves to protect ski area operators from unpredictable litigation costs. It establishes a minimum standard of care for skiers and ski area operators, but it does not eliminate common law rights or abrogate liability for reckless or willful and wanton behavior. To the extent that any common law or statutory provision is inconsistent with the Ski Safety Act, the Act controls.

Under the Ski Safety Act, skiers must ski within the range of their abilities, maintain a proper lookout, control their speed and course, obey posted warnings, and generally avoid skiing in a manner that could cause injury. Skiers expressly assume the risk of injury resulting from any of the inherent dangers of skiing. However, nothing in the Ski Safety Act limits a skier's right to sue another skier for injury resulting from that skier's acts or omissions. While each skier must comply with the duties set forth in the Ski Safety Act, in the case of a collision, the Act creates a presumption that the uphill skier had a better opportunity to avoid the collision. Additionally...