John Chase’s experience spans 30 years of litigating a wide range of civil matters in state and federal courts. From 1999 through 2024, his practice involved litigation, arbitration and appeals focused on cases pending in Colorado and Wyoming, but also including cases venued throughout the Mountain West and Midwest regions of the United States.

John has arbitrated, litigated and settled liability claims involving:

• residential and commercial construction defect and contract disputes;
• contract disputes involving oilfield services;
• contract disputes involving mineral rights and royalty interests;
• residential and commercial lease disputes;
• real estate purchase and sale agreements;
• easement disputes; and,
• other contract-based claims that involve liquidated damages, fee shifting agreements and insurance implications.

John also has extensive experience evaluating and resolving bodily injury and wrongful death claims arising from:

• bicycle, motorcycle, automobile, trucking, off road vehicle, boating, and aircraft accidents;
• oilfield, construction site and other workplace accidents;
• premises liability claims; and,
• product liability claims.

John’s insurance coverage experience includes handling:

• claims for uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage;
• claims for first-party insurance coverage involving hail damage, fire damage, water damage, and business interruption losses;
• claims of unreasonable delay or denial of benefits under C.R.S. §§ 10-3-1115 and 1116;
• disclosure violations under C.R.S. § 10-3-1117;
• disputes under liability policies seeking coverage for property damage and “rip and tear” damages, and often involving application of business risk exclusions, insured contract coverage issues, or additional insured coverage disputes;
• claims for coverage under professional liability policies issued to legal, design, or medical professionals;
• personal and advertising injury coverage claims involving defamation, wrongful eviction, trespass, and copyright or trade dress violations; and,
• claims under specialty policies covering crop insurance, airport liability, food contamination and ride share operations, just to name a few examples.

In private practice, John regularly authored coverage opinions and participated in countless mediations as insurance coverage counsel, either as personal counsel for an insured or coverage counsel for an insurer, to assist litigants in resolving disputes despite limitations on coverage for property damage, bodily injury, personal and advertising injury, professional liability and other exposures.

Prior to moving to Colorado, John served as an attorney for the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries from 1996 to 1999, focusing on natural resources law and facilitating responsible oil and gas exploration and development on lands managed by the Department.  From 1995 to 1996, he served as law clerk to the Honorable Charles R. Scott of the First Judicial District Court in his hometown, Shreveport, Louisiana, where he assisted in the management of a civil docket.

In his spare time, John enjoys all of the outdoor activities that Colorado has to offer, including hiking, camping, rafting, skiing, cycling, hunting, fishing and live music at Red Rocks and other venues throughout Colorado with family and friends.  He is also a skilled carpenter with a special appreciation for the character and craftsmanship embodied in older homes, who has personally restored a half dozen homes.

Representative cases include:

• Deutsch v. BITCO General Insurance Corp., 21-1150-EFM, 2022 WL 796308, USDC, D. Kansas (03/16/2022) (finding no coverage under a CGL policy for allegations of improper payments of royalty interests for oil production)
• Carballido v. Target Corp., 1:19-cv-01057-REB-SKC, 2021 WL 1376997, USDC, D. Colo. (04/12/2021) (distinguishing between affirmative and rebuttal experts, denying  motion to strike rebuttal experts, and striking certain opinions of retained medical expert for violations of FRCP 26(a)(2)(B))
• Union Insurance Co. v. Klingenberg, d/b/a Klink’s Plumbing and Heating, CIV 20-4028, 2021 WL 1102189, USDC, D. South Dakota (03/23/2021) (applying business risk exclusions in a CGL policy to find that property damage to the named insured’s work was excluded from coverage)
• Marshall v. Target Corp., 17-cv-00880-WYD-STV, 2018 WL 3475204, USDC, D. Colo. (07/19/2018) (addressing spoliation of evidence standard in federal court and denying  motion for spoliation sanctions on the basis that any alleged prejudice was speculative or de minimus)
• Ensign United States Drilling, Inc. v. B&H Rig and Tong Sales, 13-cv-00724-LTB, 2013 WL 5834558, USDC, D. Colo. (10/30/2013) (dismissing case for lack of personal jurisdiction)
• Target Corporation v. Prestige Maintenance USA, LTD., 351 P.3d 493 (Colo. App. 2013) (subrogation recovery of over $700,000 in workers compensation benefits paid by Target to an employee who was injured as a result of the defendant’s negligence affirmed on appeal)
• Malaga, LLC, A Nevada Limited Liability Company, et al. v. Charter Oak Fire Insurance Company, et al., 11CA2356, June 13, 2013 (summary judgment finding no coverage due under a CGL policy for allegations of trespass and breach of an easement agreement affirmed on appeal)
• Travelers Prop. Cas. Co. of Am. v. Farmers Ins. Exch., 240 P.3d 521 (Colo. App. 2010) (finding no additional insured coverage due for liability arising out of ownership, maintenance or use of a restaurant premises where a patron slipped and fell in the parking lot upon leaving the restaurant)
• Sheffield Servs. Co. v. Trowbridge, 211 P.3d 714 (Colo. App. 2009) (in a matter of first impression, holding that Colorado statutory law governing limited liability companies did not preclude application of the common law doctrine of “veil piercing” to impose personal liability on the managing member of a LLC who was responsible for improper distributions of LLC assets)
• Grabau v. Target Corp., 06-cv-01308-WDM-KLM, 2008 WL 179442, USDC, D. Colo. (01/17/2008) (denying motion for leave to add punitive damage claim as futile based upon the failure to make a prima facie showing of willful and wanton conduct)
• Titan Indem. Co. v. Travelers Prop. Cas. Co. of Am., 181 P.3d 303 (Colo. App. 2007), (applying a “professional services” exclusion in a CGL policy to exclude coverage for liability arising out of the insured’s failure to schedule an independent medical examination or pay medical bills as required under the terms of a contract with a third party)
• Bainbridge, Inc. v. Travelers Cas. Co., 159 P.3d 748 (Colo. App. 2006) (applying the doctrine of equitable subrogation to allow a home purchaser to recover for damages that occurred when the purchaser’s predecessor in title owned the home)
• Farmington Cas. Co. v. Duggan, 417 F.3d 1141 (10th Cir. 2005) (applying business risk exclusions in a CGL policy to exclude coverage for damage to masonry block walls that collapsed after substantial completion, but before all work required by the construction contract had been completed)