Business Lawsuits in State Court
Colorado has mostly implemented the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure with some changes. After a lawsuit is filed, the following must occur:
- The defendant must be served with the Complaint within 63 days.
- After service of the Complaint, the defendant must respond to the lawsuit within 21 days.
- After that, the case is “at issue” and within 28 days the parties must exchange the names and addresses of all persons with relevant information and provide all documents that are relevant to the dispute.
- Counsel for the parties must meet and jointly draft a proposed Case Management Order.
- A Case Management Conference is held with the judge within 49 days and the judge enters an Order scheduling the trial, pre-trial, and several expert and discovery deadlines.
- The parties engage in written discovery, depositions, and disclosure of expert opinions (if necessary).
- The parties attend a mediation conference to attempt to resolve the case.
- If the case doesn’t resolve, it goes to trial before a judge or jury.
The Colorado Supreme Court has mandated that most cases must go to trial within a year of the “at issue” date. That means from the date of filing a lawsuit until a trial, it’s usually about 12 to 18 months.
How long a case takes in federal court in Colorado
A case filed in the United States District Court for Colorado is considerably longer than state court. It’s usually closer to 3-4 years or longer to end up in trial. Motion practice is also considerably slower in federal court (national statistics indicated it takes a federal court 4-6-months to rule on a Motion to Dismiss).
How to speed up a case in state or federal court in Colorado
If you hit the ground running with a case it can be positioned for a favorable resolution by mediation. Discovery, depositions, and effective motion practice can narrow the issues and telegraph to the opposing party where the case is going (hopefully, not in their favor). With the more relaxed standard for summary judgment, courts have become more likely to grant a summary judgment if the material issues are genuinely not in dispute. The courts can also interim relief to parties including injunctive relief, appointment of a receiver to oversee the day-to-day functions of business, and other dispute resolution mechanisms.