I've previously noted that the Court of Appeals decision in this case, a premises liability case at the Jefferson County, Colorado courthouse (commonly known as the Taj Mahal) would be a great one for a law school textbook. Now, the Colorado Supreme Court has affirmed this ruling. The Colorado Supreme Court opinion (County of Jefferson v. Strickle, 2024 CO 7, ¶ 1) explains that:
Beverly Stickle lost her balance and fell when she stepped down from a walkway to the parking lot surface at a parking structure adjacent to the Jefferson County Courts and Administration Building. She broke her arm and subsequently sued Jefferson County (“the County”) for damages sustained from the accident. The County moved to dismiss, arguing that it was immune from suit under the Colorado Governmental Immunity Act (“CGIA”) because (1) the parking structure is not a “building” and (2) the condition that Stickle alleges caused her injury was solely the consequence of the parking lot’s “design.” If either of these arguments were successful, the County would indeed be immune from suit. However, we conclude that the parking structure at issue is a building as that word is used in the CGIA and that the dangerous condition that Stickle alleges caused her fall is not attributable solely to the design of the parking structure. Accordingly, the County is not immune from suit, and Stickle’s claim may proceed.
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