Facts

On March 1, 2012, plaintiff Leslie McLaughlin, 32, and her friend James Tollins went to Mountain High ski resort to ski. Leslie and James began to ski down Woodworth Gulch. The Gulch was marked as a green, or beginner, run. They had never been down the Gulch before.

Leslie noticed there was an uphill portion of the trail ahead, which extended the entire width of the Gulch. The uphill portion of was not marked in any way, and plaintiff simply believed it to be a gentle uphill grade and rollover, which was part of the natural terrain. Plaintiff could not see the other side of this uphill rise and did not know what was on the other side. When plaintiff started going up the slope, she was suddenly launched into the air and rotated backwards. She was not intending to jump. She landed on her neck and back.

The uphill rise was in fact a staging area. The staging area was over six feet tall, extended the entire width of the Gulch, and had a flat top. The staging area was meant for skiers and snowboarders to prepare to use the terrain features such as jumps, rails, jibs, etc.

PLAINTIFF'S CONTENTIONS:
Plaintiff contended that defendant unreasonably increased the risks inherent in the sport of skiing by building a staging area across the entire width of a green, beginner, trail, and by building the staging area with a concave uphill slope, which causes patrons to become airborne and rotate backwards. Plaintiff claimed defendant also created unnecessary risk by allowing patrons to use the staging area as a jump, by not constructing an appropriate landing area, since it was known that the staging area was used as a jump, and by not providing any warnings or signage to alert patrons that the man-made structure is a staging area and that there is a terrain park on the other side.

DEFENDANT'S CONTENTIONS:
Defendant contended that McLaughlin is solely responsible. Defendant argued that Mountain High is an all terrain park mountain, which means there are jumps and terrain features everywhere. Defendant also argued that McLaughlin did not adhere to warnings and instructions on signs on the mountain and in the brochures and trail maps, which designated the Gulch as a slow zone.

Defendants alleged that McLaughlin was skiing too fast, was out of control, and should have stopped or slowed down when she came to the staging area. They also alleged that they did not increase the risks inherent in the sport of skiing, and that there had been no other incidents like this one since the time of the creation of the staging area in 2004. Defendant further alleged that the staging area was groomed every night and inspected everyday.

Defendants presented evidence that the Gulch is not a "beginner" run, it is an "easier" trail.

Injuries

McLaughlin suffered a C8 burst fracture with retropulsion of the bony fragments into the spinal cord. She has been diagnosed with C6-7 complete quadriplegia. At the time of her injuries, she was an equine veterinarian who specialized in racehorses, and was earning approximately $105,000 per year. Since the date of the incident, she has not returned to work, and will not be able to return to work as a veterinarian in the future. Plaintiff's expert opined that Leslie was skiing at 34 mph and defendant's expert opined that her speed was in excess of 40 mph.

Result

The jury awarded plaintiff a total of $21,987,215 in damages. However, the jury found plaintiff to be 82 percent negligent. The jury found Mountain High Resort Associates LLC 18 percent negligent and therefore plaintiff will recover $3,957,699 from defendants.

Other Information

INSURER: Nova Casualty Company and Great American Assurance Company. FILING DATE: Oct. 11, 2012.