 |
 |
to fill out a simple form to connect to Personal Injury Lawyers in your area.
|
|
|
|
|
Colorado Compensation Insurance Authority v. Jones5/19/2005
JUDGMENT AFFIRMED IN PART, REVERSED IN PART, AND CASE REMANDED WITH DIRECTIONS
Vogt and Hawthorne, JJ., concur
Intervenor, Colorado Compensation Insurance Authority, d/b/a Pinnacol Assurance Company (Pinnacol), appeals the judgment rejecting its subrogation claim and determining that plaintiff, Kenneth W. Satterfield was entitled to all the proceeds received when Pinnacol and Satterfield settled a personal injury claim against Harley and Sylvia Hagan. Satterfield and Pinnacol also appeal the summary judgment dismissing a similar personal injury claim against Ron Jones. We affirm in part, reverse in part, and remand with directions.
Kenneth Satterfield was driving a truck with an attached semitrailer for his employer when he approached a herd of cattle. The cattle were being herded on the road by Jones, the owner, and the Hagans, who were assisting Jones. Satterfield slowed but did not stop, and he proceeded to pass the herd. This angered Jones and Harley Hagan.
As Satterfield drove away, Harley Hagan pursued him for some distance. Hagan then went to his nearby home where he obtained a gun. Hagan returned to the herd, spoke with Sylvia Hagan, and then left again in pursuit of Satterfield. Hagan did not tell Jones where he was going or what he intended to do. Sylvia Hagan called the police and reported that Hagan had a gun and was pursuing Satterfield. Hagan found Satterfield unloading the semitrailer several miles from the initial incident. Hagan then shot Satterfield, and as a result of the wound, Satterfield was paralyzed from the waist down.
Because the injury was sustained in the course of his employment, Satterfield received workers' compensation benefits paid by Pinnacol.
Satterfield brought a personal injury action against the Hagans and Jones. Pinnacol was permitted to intervene in the actions to assert subrogation rights under ยง 8-41-203, C.R.S. 2004, to the extent of the workers' compensation benefits it was obligated to provide to Satterfield.
Satterfield and Pinnacol agreed to settle the personal injury action against the Hagans for $500,000, the coverage limit under their insurance policy. Pinnacol also received an additional $30,000 from Harley Hagan for a waiver of Pinnacol's right to seek restitution in the criminal action brought against him.
Satterfield and Pinnacol did not agree on an allocation of the settlement proceeds, and Pinnacol moved for an evidentiary hearing in accordance with Colorado Compensation Insurance Authority v. Jorgensen, 992 P.2d 1156 (Colo. 2000), to determine the portion of the proceeds it would be entitled to receive. Following a hearing, the trial court found Satterfield's non-economic damages caused by Harley Hagan were $732,500 and his damages for physical impairment and disfigurement were $2 million. Pinnacol does not appeal these findings. The court also found that Sylvia Hagan was responsible for non-economic damages of $366,250 and that Pinnacol, pursuant to its workers' compensation obligations, had paid $129,000 in medical benefits and $17,670 for temporary total disability benefits. It further found that Pinnacol had no subrogation rights in $116,000 of the amount it had paid because that amount was equivalent to benefits under the motor vehicle insurance policy covering the truck Satterfield was driving (PIP benefits), and Pinnacol does not appeal this ruling.
The court also found that Pinnacol would continue to pay workers' compensation benefits to Satterfield, but it made no findings as to the amount of future payments. The court then ruled that Pinnacol had no subrogation rights to any part of the settlement because the $500,000 settlement
Page 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Colorado Personal Injury Attorneys
Personal Injury Lawyers
|
| |
to fill out a simple form to connect to Personal Injury Lawyers in your area.
|
|