Montgomery Little & Soran, PC

October 2011 - Trial: Fred Skillern and Nate Osborn's client received a verdict for $986,000 in a complex title insurance case in Colorado Springs, dealing with a title agent's negligence and breach of its agency agreement with a national title insurance underwriter.

October 2011 - Fall Real Estate Update: For the sixth year in a row, Fred Skillern spoke at the CLE's Fall Real Estate Update. His subject was a Colorado Case Law Update: Latest Interpretation of Statutory Rule Against Perpetuities and Other Difficult Questions.

September 2011 Seminar: Bill Searfoorce and John Riley presented different topics at a September 30, 2011 loss prevention seminar for licensed professional engineers. Bill spoke to the engineers for several hours about liability pursuant to design contracts and minimizing liability. John's presentation to the audience was understanding general liability insurance policies and design liability insurance policies. The attendees all received continuing education credits for the seminar.

August 2011 Trial: A Douglas County District Court entered a directed verdict at the close of plaintiff's evidence in favor of John Riley's client during a jury trial the week of August 29, 2011. The case involved construction defect issues for a commercial property. John represented a licensed professional.

Skillern Speaks at Real Estate Symposium: Fred Skillern presented his update on real estate case law in a speech at the Colorado Bar Association's 29th annual Real Estate Symposium on July 14, 2011 in Vail. This was Fred's thirteenth annual case law presentation at this gathering of Colorado's leading real estate attorneys. He presented an updated version of CLE of Colorado, Inc. at the Fall Real Estate Update in Denver on October 14, 2011.

June 2011 Award of Merit: David Little was honored with the Denver Bar Association's Award of Merit at its annual awards ceremony on June 7, 2011. The Award of Merit recognizes a member's outstanding service and contributions made to the DBA and the legal profession. Dave Little was honored for his continuing fifty plus years as a lawyer in Colorado. He continues to chair select committees to the Colorado Supreme Court and regularly publishes and lectures on lawyer's professional liability. Dave has also been recognized by the Denver Business Journal as the "Best in the Bar."

May 2011 Trial: A Jackson, Wyoming jury returned a verdict in favor of Chris Taravella and Ryan Polk's client after a three day trial in May 2011 regarding engineering issues involved in the sale of a house in Jackson. The jury deliberated for 1 ½ hours prior to returning the defense verdict.

May 2011 Trial: A Douglas County Court dismissed professional negligence claims against Nate Osborn's client at the start of trial on May 9, 2011. Nate then proceeded to trial in the same case for his other client, a lender, and the court entered a directed verdict at the close of plaintiff's evidence in favor of Nate's client.

Summary Judgment: A Douglas County District Court issued an Order the first week of May 2011 granting summary judgment on all claims in favor of Chris Little's client and against the plaintiff in a professional liability case. This case was scheduled for trial on May 31, 2011. The claims dismissed alleged fraud, conspiracy and negligence.

5 Firm Lawyers Selected as Colorado Super Lawyers® 2011 & 2010: David Little, James Soran, Fred Skillern, Robert Beattie and Christopher Little were all honored as 2011 and 2010 Super Lawyers®.

2011 Race for the Cure: Vicki Fields, Montgomery, Little & Soran employee, is co-chair for the 2011 Komen Race for the Cure in Denver, Colorado to be held in October, 2011. She also co-chaired the race in 2010. This fund raising event for breast cancer research and community outreach programs serves 19 counties in Colorado. The Denver Race for the Cure has approximately 50,000 participants and is the 3rd highest fundraising affiliate out of the 125 affiliates in the Komen for the Cure network.

Seminars: David Little and Chris Little recently presented on risk management and legal malpractrice claims at seminars presented by the Colorado Bar Association CLE. On February 4, 2011 Chris Little lectured on litigation risks in a talk titled "Miscellaneous Minefields--Electronically Stored Information (ESI) and Litigation Finance Companies." On April 15, 2011 Dave Little lectured on Alternative Lawyer Relationships at the program, "Malpractice Insurance Coverage: What's In Your Policy?"

Skillern Speaks at Real Estate Symposium: Fred Skillern presented his annual update on legal developments in the area of real estate law at the 2010 Real Estate Symposium for CLE in Colorado. The conference was held on July 15, 2010, in Snowmass, Colorado.

Firm Attorneys Contribute to Treatise on Colorado Construction Law: In July 2010, several of the firm's construction law attorneys were asked to contribute to the revised volume of The Practitioner's Guide to Colorado Construction Law. John Riley, Bill Searfoorce and Jeff Leake authored sections of the edition of the series, published by CLE In Colorado.

Supreme Court Opinion: On June 28, 2010, the Colorado Supreme Court ruled in favor of Fred Skillern's client in Hicks v. Joondeph, et al, which will be a leading case in the area of lien priorities and equitable subrogation.

May 2010 Trial: Chris Little represented a client in a legal malpractice case in a jury trial in Montrose County District Court in May, 2010.

Verdict in Favor of HOA: In March 2010, Fred Skillern and Nathan Osborn successfully defended a large homeowner association in a Jefferson County District Court trial on a challenge to the adoption of certain amendments to the subdivision's protective covenants. After the successful ruling, the association was awarded judgment for its attorney fees. The next day, in a related case, Skillern and Osborn successfully obtained a preliminary injunction for the association in Park County District Court. The injunction prevents the attempted closure of key subdivision access roads pending further court proceedings.

Verdict in Favor of Employer: In September 2009, Christopher A. Taravella and Michael R. McCormick tried an employment law case to a jury in the Douglas County District Court defending an international company providing audio and web conferencing services. The employee's claim included a demand under the Colorado Wage Claim Act for wages and penalties, and damages for mental suffering. The jury returned a favorable verdict for the employer and refused to award the employee any wages or penalties under the Wage Claim Act or any damages for mental suffering.

Attorney Honored: Christopher Little was awarded the Colorado Trial Lawyers' Association "Professionalism Award" in 2009. The award is given to a litigation lawyer "who has shown competency, ethics, and professionalism on behalf of his or her clients."