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LEGAL FINANCE SUIT NEARING END: And with it, comes the possibility of a big change in the state, reports The Denver Post. The industry is based on the concept of advancing money to plaintiffs in civil lawsuits to help pay their expenses, not their attorneys. In return, the lender receives a piece of the settlement. The industry backed out of Colorado in early 2010, when the attorney general’s office declared the firms should have to register as lenders under the law and abide by state regulations for such companies. That action forced a lawsuit by the businesses, and a countersuit by the Attorney General’s office.
THAT’S NOT CHUMP CHANGE: Apache Corp. is shelling out $285 billion to acquire Greenwood Village-based Cordelia Energy Partners, reports the Denver Business Journal. Cordillera has about 254,000 net acres in the Granite Wash, Tonkawa, Cleveland and Marmaton plays in western Oklahoma and the Texas Panhandle. The company also has estimated proved reserves of 71.5 million barrels of oil equivalent and net production of 18,000 boe per day.
MR. LEGISLATURE DIES: Former state Rep. Gerald Kopel, who began his career as a journalist before serving 22 years in the Colorado legislature where he earned a reputation for dedication and hard work, died Saturday. He and his wife taught a bar preparation course for years. Send us an e-mail if you took his course and have a story to share. Even after leaving the House of Representatives, Kopel, 83, continued to help legislators, reading and analyzing pending bills for his fellow Democrats. Morgan Smith’s tribute. A memorial will be Feb. 4.
FORMER DA DIED IN BOATING ACCIDENT: Joe Lovasio, the former district attorney for Pueblo, was killed in a boating accident last week on Lake Cuomo in Italy, the Pueblo Chieftan reported. Losavio, a controversial figure in the Pueblo crime and political scene for years, was reportedly killed in a boating accident at his home in Lake Como, Italy. Law Week will have more details as they become available.
BOULDER CONTINUES TO DEAL WITH HOMELESS ISSUES: Last week the Boulder City Attorney suggested that jury trials be eliminated for camping violations, which are typically filed against the homeless camping in Boulder’s city limits. This week, the Boulder City Council is debating whether an apartment complex for the homeless should be built, and the City Attorney is again in the middle, offering his two cents on its viability.
POSSIBLE CLASS ACTION OVER TIPS: A Fort Collins law firm has sued an Aspen restaurant, Cache Cache, claiming it ran an illegal tip pool for its employees. For now there is only one plaintiff, Sandro Torres, but is seeking others. The federal suit alleges that the restaurant provided a tip pool for more than just its front of the house workers, which is forbidden by the Colorado Wage Claim Act. Under Colorado law, restaurants are permitted to pay front of the house workers less than minimum wage, given they are provided a tip pool. That law prohibits that tip pool from being offered to workers in the back, like chefs and dishwashers.
NEW ATTORNEY SEEKING HOUSE SEAT: Broomfield attorney David Pigott, an associate with Denver-based personal injury firm Bloch & Chapleau, has filed paperwork with the Secretary of State’s office to run an election for Colorado House of Representatives in District 33, reports the Broomfield Enterprise. Pigott, a Republican, will face incumbent Dianne Primavera, a Democrat, who is in her second term. Pigott is a graduate of West Point who served in the Iraq war. He was admitted to the Colorado bar last year, and he practices personal injury, criminal defense and family law.
GOING ROGUE HE DID: The Aspen cab driver who was driving without his taxi license was given 15 days in jail for his actions.
WELL ISN’T THAT NICE: The Denver Business Journal picked up on Law Week’s space law coverage from the end of November and wrote their own story on the up-and-coming practice area.
CAN YOU BELIEVE IT? The Denver showing of Broadway hit “Book of Mormon” sold out in five hours. Not too shabby, but there were endless lines and a website crash to get there.
WHAT’S SEEN IN LAW AND POLITICS: That’s the focus of a new site by Circuit Media, The News Seen. We want to see what you’re doing in your official and not-so-official capacities. Send us events we should attend and pictures of events we’ve missed so we can put your name in lights.
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