Denver Wrongful Death Lawyers

Metier Law Firm: Wrongful Death Attorneys Serving Denver Families

Metier Law Firm has represented seriously injured clients and the families of wrongful death victims across Colorado for decades. Our attorneys do not build cases around settlement. We prepare every matter as though it will go before a jury, because that preparation compels opposing counsel and insurance carriers to take our clients seriously at every stage.

Our approach to wrongful death representation includes:

• Trial-Ready Preparation: Every case is built from day one with courtroom advocacy in mind, not a quick resolution that serves the opposing side's financial interests.
• Consistent, Personalized Representation: Grieving families are never passed from attorney to attorney. Our team stays with each client through every phase, from the first consultation through resolution.
• Credentialed Attorneys with Industry-Specific Knowledge: Our attorneys hold board certifications in civil trial law and truck accident litigation from the National Board of Trial Advocacy. Managing Partner Mike Chaloupka holds a Class A Commercial Driver's License and has completed formal truck driver training. Multiple attorneys hold Super Lawyers, Best Lawyers in America, and AV ratings from Martindale-Hubbell, the highest possible peer review rating for legal ability and ethics.

• Proven Results Against Powerful Opponents: With decades of experience fighting insurance companies and corporate defendants across Colorado, our attorneys have secured a $1.7 million wrongful death settlement, a $6 million-plus wrongful death settlement, a $17 million insurance bad faith settlement arising from a vehicle crash, and a $52 million verdict in a vehicle crash case. These outcomes reflect what happens when a firm refuses to back down.

Our attorneys have spent their entire careers fighting for working people and their families, not for insurance companies.

What Is a Wrongful Death Claim in Colorado?

A wrongful death claim is a civil legal action that allows surviving family members to seek compensation when a loved one dies due to the negligence, recklessness, or intentional conduct of another party. Under C.R.S. § 13-21-201, Colorado law authorizes specific family members to bring this type of claim when the circumstances surrounding the death would have supported a personal injury lawsuit had the victim survived.

Colorado wrongful death law establishes a tiered system of eligible claimants. In the first year after the death, only the surviving spouse may bring the claim. Beginning in the second year, children of the deceased may join the action if no spouse survives or has not filed. Parents of an unmarried decedent with no children may also have standing under certain conditions.

The wrongful death claim is entirely separate from any criminal proceedings that may arise from the same incident. A criminal case is pursued by the state; the wrongful death claim is a civil action brought for the benefit of surviving family members. Even when no criminal charges are filed, a civil wrongful death action may still be viable and may produce substantial compensation.

Common Causes of Wrongful Death in Denver

Denver's sustained growth over the past decade has brought heavier traffic, expanded construction zones, and increased commercial truck activity throughout the metro area. According to fatal crash data from the Colorado Department of Transportation, Denver recorded 73 traffic fatalities in 2023, the highest in the city in at least a decade, with impairment, speed, and distracted driving as the top contributing factors.

Common causes of wrongful death claims in Denver include:

• Motor Vehicle Accidents: Speeding, distracted driving, impaired driving, and failure to yield are leading contributors to fatal crashes in Denver and throughout Denver County.
• Commercial Truck Accidents: When a driver, trucking company, or fleet operator violates federal Hours of Service rules, weight limits, or maintenance standards, the consequences are frequently fatal, and the liability may extend to multiple parties.
• Motorcycle Accidents: Fatal motorcycle crashes often involve driver inattention due to other motorists and dangerous road conditions. Victims are often wrongly blamed despite having the right of way, and our attorneys know how to counter that narrative.
• Premises Liability: Property owners who fail to address inadequate security, defective structures, or unmarked hazards may bear liability when those conditions contribute to a fatal injury.
• Medical Malpractice: Surgical errors, failure to diagnose, anesthesia complications, and medication failures can each constitute negligence when a healthcare provider's conduct falls below the accepted standard of care, and a patient dies.
• Defective Products: Manufacturers and distributors may be liable when a defective vehicle component, consumer product, or industrial equipment causes a fatal accident.
• Workplace Accidents: Fatal injuries in construction, oil and gas, and industrial settings often involve OSHA violations or third-party negligence that exposes contractors, property owners, and equipment manufacturers to wrongful death liability beyond workers' compensation.

The cause of the death shapes the entire legal strategy. Our attorneys investigate every case thoroughly to identify each responsible party and every applicable legal theory.

Compensation Available in Denver Wrongful Death Claims

Colorado law permits surviving family members to recover a range of damages in a wrongful death action. The categories available depend on the circumstances of the death and the relationship of the claimants to the deceased.

Economic Damages

Economic damages represent the measurable financial losses caused by the death. These include:

• Lost Income and Future Earnings: Compensation accounts for the income the deceased would have earned over the remainder of their working life, including career trajectory, benefits, and expected raises.
• Medical Expenses: Emergency care, hospitalization, and treatment costs incurred between the injury and the death are fully recoverable as part of the wrongful death or survival action.
• Funeral and Burial Costs: Reasonable expenses related to final arrangements are recognized components of economic damages claims under Colorado law.

Non-Economic Damages

Non-economic damages address profound personal losses that Colorado law recognizes as real and compensable. Surviving family members may recover for:

• Grief, Loss of Companionship, and Emotional Distress: The pain of losing a spouse, parent, or child is a legally recognized harm. Colorado allows families to pursue compensation for the relational losses they carry for the rest of their lives.
• Loss of Consortium: A surviving spouse may recover for the loss of the marital relationship, including companionship, emotional support, and intimacy, when the relationship ends permanently due to another party's negligence.
• Loss of Parental Guidance: Children who lose a parent may recover for the deprivation of guidance, nurturing, and the ongoing parental relationship that negligence cut short.

Punitive Damages

In cases involving especially egregious or intentional conduct, Colorado courts may award punitive damages to punish the defendant and deter comparable behavior, rather than to compensate the family. Punitive damages require clear and convincing evidence of the defendant's wrongful state of mind and are not available in every case. Our attorneys assess the facts carefully and do not hesitate to seek them when the conduct warrants it.

Colorado Wrongful Death Statute of Limitations

Colorado imposes a strict two-year deadline for filing a wrongful death claim. Under C.R.S. § 13-21-203, surviving family members generally have two years from the date of death to initiate legal action. Missing that deadline almost always results in a permanent, unrecoverable loss of the right to pursue compensation, regardless of how strong the underlying facts may be.

Several circumstances can affect how the deadline applies. Claims involving government entities are subject to the Colorado Governmental Immunity Act, which imposes shorter notice deadlines and separate procedural requirements before any lawsuit can be filed. Cases where the cause of death was not immediately apparent may present different timing questions that require legal analysis from the outset.

How Our Denver Wrongful Death Lawyers Build Your Case

Building a wrongful death case requires thoroughness, resources, and a willingness to stand against defendants backed by entire legal departments. At Metier Law Firm, our process is deliberate from the moment we take a case:

• Evidence Preservation and Independent Investigation: We act quickly to secure accident scene documentation, black box data, surveillance footage, driver logs, and maintenance records, conducting our own investigation rather than relying on reports from parties with a financial stake in a different outcome.
• Forensic and Economic Analysis: Our attorneys work with accident reconstructionists, medical professionals, vocational rehabilitation analysts, and economic loss consultants to build a complete, defensible picture of damages.
• Specialized Truck and Motorcycle Knowledge: Founding Partner Tom Metier is board-certified in truck accident law by the National Board of Trial Advocacy and served as President of the Academy of Truck Accident Attorneys. Managing Partner Mike Chaloupka holds a Class A CDL and attended truck driving school. For motorcycle-related deaths, our attorneys have extensive experience countering liability disputes and bias on behalf of riders and their families.
• Insurance Bad Faith Litigation: When insurers delay valid claims, underpay grieving families, or deny coverage without justification, we pursue those companies directly. Our attorneys have secured multi-million-dollar results in bad faith cases arising from fatal crashes.
• Trial Preparation from Day One: We do not structure cases around settlement. We prepare for trial at every stage so that our clients are never at a disadvantage when opposing counsel weighs what a jury might do with the facts.

Families should not have to face this fight alone, and with our team, they do not.

Contact a Denver Wrongful Death Lawyer at Metier Law Firm Today

If you have lost a family member because of someone else's negligence, the time to act is now. Metier Law Firm is ready to stand with your family, pursue full accountability, and fight for every dollar Colorado law allows. 

Call our Denver wrongful death lawyers today at (866) 377-3800 for a free consultation.