DENVER (AP) — A Colorado Court of Appeals panel delivered the first state appellate decision affirming the use of waivers to protect ski resorts from lawsuits filed by injured skiers.
A three-judge panel ruled last week in affirmation of a lower court’s summary judgment in favor of Clear Creek Skiing Corp., The Colorado Sun reports.
The Loveland ski area owner was sued in a case involving a passenger who was injured while exiting a ski lift in March 2017.
When a skier in front of her fell while leaving Loveland’s Ptarmigan chairlift, Charlotte Redden was struck by the lift as she navigated around the fallen skier and suffered a broken pelvis.
Redden argued the lift attendant should have slowed the lift and was negligent under laws outlined by the state’s 1979 Ski Safety Act and the 1964 Colorado Passenger Tramway Safety Act.
Redden plans to appeal the case to the Colorado Supreme Court.
A decision by the state’s highest court would determine if the tiny-print waivers on the back of lift tickets releasing resorts from “any and all liability” take precedence over the Ski Safety Act, which assigns some responsibilities for skiers and lift safety to resort operators.
Next Read:
- Biden faces long odds in push for more state ‘red flag’ laws
- Police: Woman breaks into Michigan home, climbs into bed with couple
- Judge refuses request to acquit Chauvin in Floyd’s death
- ‘Couldn’t breathe’: A personal reaction to Johnson & Johnson vaccine
- Family finds $40K in home damage after Disney trip; kids responsible won’t face charges, police say
