A Colorado jury awarded a woman $12.4 million in damages in a landmark case after she fell from a ski lift at a mountain resort when she was 16.
Annie Miller and her family sued Vail Resorts after she fell 30 feet from the Paradise Express lift at the company’s Crested Butte Mountain Resort in March 2022. The fall shattered one of her vertebrae, paralyzing her and leaving her unable to walk, The Colorado Sun reports
A jury partially sided with Miller on Friday after a lengthy legal battle spanning several years and multiple courtrooms. Miller, now 20, is currently a junior at the University of Tulsa studying music and psychology, The Denver Post reports.
“We are trying to hold ski areas accountable to ensure they are following the safety rules and violations they have agreed to follow, in order to protect folks like Annie Miller who come out and want to ski,” her attorney, Brian Aleinikoff, told The Denver Post. “To me, it is not asking that much of them.”
The Independent has contacted Aleinikoff for comment.
Vail Resorts disagrees with the jury’s decision and believes it was inconsistent with state law, the company said in a statement to The Independent.
“Still, we recognize the personal toll this accident has taken on Ms. Miller and her family, and we wish her continued strength in her recovery,” the company added. “We remain committed to the highest safety standards in our operations.”
When the Miller family first sued Vail Resorts, they argued the company’s ski lift operators were negligent because they didn’t stop the lift when Miller didn’t load in properly, according to The Colorado Sun. Meanwhile, the company argued it was immune to negligence claims and cited a safety waiver the family signed.
This argument, until recently, worked for decades, and courts very rarely sided with skiers who sued resorts, The Colorado Sun reports. However, that changed when the Colorado Supreme Court got involved in Miller’s case.
A Broomfield County district judge initially dismissed two of the Millers’s claims in 2023, but the family appealed the decision to the Colorado Supreme Court. The state’s highest court then ruled in 2024 that liability waivers do not protect ski resorts when the companies violate state safety laws or regulations. The decision has since sent ripples through the outdoor recreation industry, according to The Colorado Sun.
The case was then turned back to Broomfield County, where a jury heard arguments over nine days last month.
The Millers argued that Vail Resorts staff violated American National Safety Institute chairlift safety standards. Aleinikoff told The Colorado Sun this case may mark “the first and only verdict against a ski resort based on a negligence per se claim through those ANSI standards.”
After a day of deliberation, the jury initially awarded about $21 million to Miller, which included $5.2 million for non-economic damages, $10.5 million for economic losses and $5.2 million for physical impairment, according to The Colorado Sun.
However, the jury also said Vail Resorts was not entirely responsible for the incident, which meant the award was reduced to $15.8 million. Colorado law also caps noneconomic damages, which further reduced the award to $12.4 million.
Fury as thousands of TikTok tourists descend on Italian ski resort
Twelve die from carbon monoxide poisoning at Georgian ski resort
Republicans move to lift drilling and mining restrictions in Western states
Colorado sheriff's deputy disciplined for helping immigration agents resigns, ending lawsuit
Trump ends turf war and will move Space Command HQ to Alabama from Colorado
