DENVER — Colorado Civil Justice League announced winners of its Common Sense in the Courtroom Awards, given to state legislators who have demonstrated a commitment to curtailing lawsuit abuse and protecting small business and working families from the cost of frivolous litigation.

Awards will be presented at an Oct. 9 luncheon sponsored by American Furniture Warehouse, American Property & Casualty Insurers Association, Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck, COPIC, Colorado Bankers Association, Colorado Hospital Association, State Farm, Spencer Fane, and Wheeler Trigg O’Donnell.

CCJL is the only organization in Colorado exclusively dedicated to stopping lawsuit abuse while preserving a system of civil justice that fairly compensates legitimate victims.

“Common Sense in the Courtroom requires justice for those who have been harmed by someone else, balanced by fairness for those who may be wrongfully accused,” said CCJL executive director Mark Hillman.

Unfortunately, the Colorado General Assembly created too many new opportunities for lawsuits – against employers, property owners, and manufacturers.  This year, the Legislature introduced more than 50 bills to create new opportunities for litigation, making a total of nearly 200 bills over the past four years.

Fortunately, bipartisan coalitions emerged to stop many of those threats.

“At CCJL, we are grateful for the bipartisan support of legislators who understand the importance of an efficient and balanced court system to our state’s economic health,” Hillman said.

Common Sense in the Courtroom Award recipients include:

• Representatives Carlos Barron (Brighton), Scott Bottoms (Colorado Springs), Mary Bradfield (Colorado Springs), Brandi Bradley (Littleton), Max Brooks (Castle Rock), Jarvis Caldwell (Colorado Springs), Sean Camacho (Denver), Michael Carter (Aurora), Ken DeGraaf (Colorado Springs), Monica Duran (Wheat Ridge), Cecelia Espenoza (Denver), Ava Flanell (Colorado Springs), Lori Garcia Sander (Eaton), Lori Goldstein (Westminster), Ryan Gonzalez (Greeley), Anthony Hartsook (Parker), Dusty Johnson (Fort Morgan), Stephanie Luck (Penrose), Bob Marshall (Highlands Ranch), Tisha Mauro (Pueblo), Jackie Philiips (Thornton), Chris Richardson (Elizabeth), Naquetta Ricks (Aurora), Gretchen Rydin (Littleton), Scott Slaugh (Johnstown), Matt Soper (Delta), Rick Taggart (Grand Junction), Ron Weinberg (Loveland), Ty Winter (Trinidad) and Dan Woog (Erie).
• Senators Judy Amabile (Boulder), Mark Baisley (Woodland Park), Scott Bright (Platteville), John Carson (Highlands Ranch), Marc Catlin (Montrose), Lindsey Daugherty (Arvada), Lisa Frizell (Castle Rock), Barbara Kirkmeyer (Brighton), Larry Liston (Colorado Springs), Kyle Mullica (Thornton), Rod Pelton (Cheyenne Wells), Byron Pelton (Sterling), Janice Rich (Grand Junction), Cleave Simpson (Alamosa), Marc Snyder (El Paso County), and Lynda Zamora Wilson (Monument).