Summaries of Published Opinions, 0222 COBJ, Vol. 51, No. 2 Pg. 88

• Position: Vol. 51, 2 [Page 88]

51 Colo.Law. 88

Summaries of Published Opinions

No. Vol. 51, No. 2 [Page 88]

Colorado Lawyer

February, 2022

December 13, 2021

Colorado Supreme Court

2021 CO 78. No. 20SC429. LHM Corp. v. Martinez.

Attorney Fees—Final judgments—Timeliness of Appeals.

The Supreme Court considered whether a judgment is final for purposes of appeal when the district court has determined that a plaintiff who prevails on a claim under the Colorado Consumer Protection Act, CRS §§ 6-1-101 to -1214, is en tided to an attorney fees award but die court has not yet determined die amount of those fees. The Court reaffirmed die bright-line rule adopted in Baldwin v. Bright Mortgage Co., 757 P.2d 1072 (Colo. 1988), and held that a judgment on the merits is final for purposes of appeal notwithstanding an unresolved issue of attorney fees. In so doing, the Court overruled Ferrell v. Glenwood Brokers, Ltd., 848 P.2d 936 (Colo. 1993), and the cases that followed it to die extent those cases deviated from Baldwin's bright-line rule.

Applying the Baldwin rule here, the Court affirmed the Court of Appeals' judgment dismissing defendant's appeal in part as untimely, albeit under different reasoning.

2021 CO 79. No. 20SC790. People v. Johnson.

Restitution—Statutory Interpretation—Common Law—Abatement.

The Supreme Court considered whether die General Assembly abrogated die common law doctrine of abatement ab initio as to restitution orders in criminal cases. The Court held that die statute governing restitution requires a final conviction to maintain an order of restitution. Therefore, if a defendant dies of natural causes while his or her direct appeal is still pending, die abated conviction cannot support an obligation to pay restitution.

Accordingly, die Court overruled die Court of Appeals division's decision in People v. Daly, 313 R3d 571,578 (Colo.App. 2011), and affirmed die Court of Appeals' judgment in the present matter.

2021 CO 80. No. 19SC631. Rudnicki v. Bianco.

Pre-Majority Medical Expenses—Tortious Injuries to a Child—Common Law.

This case required die Supreme Court to determine who may recover damages for the medical expenses that an unemancipated child incurs before turning 18 years old. In particular, the Court considered whether to adhere to a common law rule under which only a minor plaintiff's parents may recover tort damages for medical expenses incurred by their uneman cipated minor child.

The Court concluded that die...