Anyone know a good lawyer (Denver: insurance, credit, how much)

[katysalsa]

I'm looking for a lawyer. Probably of the "personal injury" variety. I know most personal injury lawers are ambulance chasers, but I'm hoping you can help me either way.

My husband was attacked by a dog. Yes, you read that right. He was out for his run and a german shepard (police like dog) bolted toward him knocked him down, broke his wrist, bit him on the leg etc... The owner was there, but obviously knew the dog was violent because he had a muzzle on. However, the muzzle was not fascened to the dog (that's sort of a vital ingredient to the proper usage of a muzzle.) He also was on a leash, but the stupid owner let the leash slip and the rest is history. The police came, he went to the ER in an ambulance and the Denver PD animal control took the dog.

So, here we are a few days later wondering how we get compensation for medical bills etc..

Help anyone?
Thanks

[jkcoop]

I don't know any lawyers, but what about small claims court so you don't have to pay a lawyer? I guess that depends on how much you are wanting to get. If it's just medical bills then I would think small claims court would work.

I am a runner and what happened to your husband is a fear of mine. I've come across people walking their dog on a leash, but letting them so far out on the lead that they might as well not even have them leashed. I had a close call recently due to that. She was on the phone, not paying attention, I came around a blind corner and the dog/leash were strung across the path. I was able to quickly grab the leash, jerk it up and run under. Just from that I was sore for a couple of days. Some unsavory things came out of my mouth and I know I really scared the crap out of her because on my run back I came across her again, but this time she was off the phone, completely stopped, pulled her dog over, had him sit and let me pass, and apologized.

Of course, the ultimate are the people who have their dog off leash.....

[katysalsa]

Small claims may work for us. I'll have to look into going that route. Don't know where to start on that, but I'll find out. I'm not looking to get rich off this by any means. I want the medical bills paid and if there's anything extra it would just be for the inconvienience of everything... getting husband to and from work, etc. I just don't want to pay out of pocket for someone else's negligence. Plus that dumb lady was so nonchlant about the whole thing. Like "oh whoops" sorry

I'm soo not a lawsuit type of person, but if there's ever any call for legal action, I would say this is it.

I'm such an animal lover too, so even though the dog is obviously dangerous to people, it dosn't mean that he's not a great pet to that lady, and I feel bad cause he's probably going to be put down. It should be that the lady that gets punished, not the dog... but I digress.

[Shuffler]

sue 'em...there are no stupid animals, just stupid owners, IMHO.

this is why I carry a little pepper spray and/or a little folding knife on runs or rides...never had to use either yet, but if a dog latches on to me, it's going to get the blade if the pepper spray doesn't work

You could call Fat Frank Azar, the "Strong Arm of the Law"...he'll get your money, and you'll pay him for it too...he must be dang good, judging by those TV commercials...

[Bradburn1]

Did you get their name and address? You could look into filing a claim against their homeowner's insurance, even if the attack didn't take place in front of their home.

[wanttomoveeast]

Small claims court can be a royal pain. The limit for Colorado is $7500. If you think you need more than that, you definitely need a lawyer. Most lawyers will not work on a contingent for that amount and as such will require a retainer. A contingent is where they work for you and if you win, they take 1/3 usually and you only pay costs (copies, fees, etc.). Although with guys like Frank Azar, you might find one who works on contingency. Those big suits you see (car accidents, semi's, medical) are mostly being worked on in contingency because the lawyer knows that sooner or later they'll collect, either by winning in court or settling.

If you go the small claims route, you have to file a complaint. The complaint has to be served on the defendant in a certain amount of time, usually around 10 days I think it is. You cannot serve the defendant, you either have to pay the sherriff or hire a process server. Depending on the ease of service, this could be around $30-$50. You then file the return of service (proof) with the court and they set a hearing date.

It is very informal, and small claims courts only use magistrates, not judges. Once the judge rules, an order is made. Assuming you win, you then have to ask the court for a judgment. With a judgment order, you can garnish wages (if you know where the person works), intercept tax refunds, settlements, etc. and most importantly, you can file a lien on the person's home. What you do is take the judgment order to the clerk & recorder's office in the county where the person resides and have it recorded. This means that as a debtor, he cannot transfer title without clearing the title, meaning, your lien. It also ruins the person's credit pretty good, to the point that they will want to pay you.

See, once you sue in civil court and win, that doesn't necessarily mean the person will just pay you. In fact, more than half the battle in civil lawsuits is collecting. Most of this information can be found from the Small Claims Handbook from the City & County of Denver. While I say it's a pain, I think it's an avenue worth checking out.

Hope this helps.

[katysalsa]

Yeah, I'm kind of trying to avoid the tv lawyers. I was already told jokingly, call the "strong arm." Since I'm not trying to milk this lady for all she's worth, I think that would be bad to call fat frank. I'm new to CO, so I don't even know who that is, but I can only imagine.

I believe we should have all her info. The police report should have all of that I'm guessing.

By the way, i feel like I'm 70 or something. I have no idea what all these abbreviations are DH? IMHO? what??? Where's the key at the bottom?

[Shuffler]

DH = 'devoted husband (W = wife)
IMHO = in my honest opinion

....etc.

[i_am_hydrogen]

DOG BITE LAW - Colorado

[katysalsa]

WOW wanttomoveast... I'm tired just reading that.. lol Sounds like a lot of work, but I will definately pass that info on to my husband and we'll look into that. Thanks