By: Sally Roller
Some Colorado mountains recently received their first snowfall in anticipation of the upcoming ski season. Colorado ski resorts open in under 50 days, and with those mountains opening, ski resorts will need to reflect on recent case law, Miller v. Crested Butte, LLC, 549 P.3d 228 (Colo. 2024).[1] This seemingly non-employment case likely has employment implications.
In March 2022, 16-year-old Annie Miller struggled to get seated on the Paradise Express Lift at Crested Butte Mountain Resort. Annie was not fully seated when the chair rose in the air, so she grabbed the chairlift to keep from falling. Annie’s father, Michael Miller, and others yelled for the lift to be stopped as she was dragged forward, but the lift continued, and Annie fell 30 feet on her back into hard-packed snow. Annie was left paralyzed and suffered severe injuries because of the fall.
Annie’s father brought a negligence lawsuit against Crested Butte, LLC arguing the resort employees should have stopped the lift prior to Annie falling and the employees’ failure violated Colorado statues. The district court initially dismissed the case because Michael signed a liability waiver on Annie’s behalf, which acknowledged the risks associated with skiing and released Crested Butte from liability. Michael appealed the district court decision to the Colorado Supreme Court asking whether Crested Butte could be liable for the lift accident despite signing a liability waiver. This marked the first time the Colorado Supreme Court addressed this issue.
On May 20, 2024, the Colorado Supreme Court ruled that liability waivers cannot be used to absolve ski resorts from all negligence claims and allowed the Miller family to continue to pursue their negligence lawsuit against the resort.
The case went back to district court where the jury awarded $20 million to Annie in August 2025. Annie’s case marked a rare challenge to ski resorts’ near blanket immunity for mountain injuries. The case might have an impact in the employment context where employees sign releases prior to working in an environment that needs safety measures. Employers may want to seek legal assistance for impact on their place of employment.
[1] Miller v. Crested Butte, LLC, 549 P.3d 228 (Colo. 2024), available at: https://law.justia.com/cases/colorado/supreme-court/2024/23sa186.html.