Top Rated Personal Injury Attorney in Denver, CO

Honors and Awards:

• Best Law Firms: Tier 1, Plaintiffs' Personal Injury Litigation, U.S. News and World Report, 2017
• Best Lawyers in America, Best Lawyers, 2017
• Colorado Supreme Court Pro Bono Award, 2013
• Top Attorneys in Colorado, as published by The Denver Post, 2013
• Top 100 Trial Lawyers, The National Trial Lawyers, 2013
• The Top 100 Trials Lawyers - Colorado, The National Trial Lawyers, 2012
• Woman of the Year, National Association of Professional Women, 2011
• DISTINGUISHED™ Rating from Martindale-Hubbell®
• Received an Avvo rating of "10" as shown on her Avvo profile

Bar/Professional Activity:

• National Association of Women, Member 2011
• The Injury Board, Member
• American Association for Justice, Member
• Colorado Trial Lawyers Association, Member
• American Bar Association, Member
• Colorado Bar Association, Member
• Denver Bar Association, Member
• U.S. District Court District of Colorado, 1991
• Colorado, 1991

Pro bono/Community Service:

• Denver Bar Association Pro Bono Program; firm is annually recognized by the Colorado Supreme Court and receives its Pro Bono Achievement Award 
• Mountain Area Forum & Bergen Leadership Councils, Chair
• Bergen Elementary Schools PTA, Co-President 
• Jeffco Public Schools-Citizen Review Committee, Budget Development (2005 - 2006)
• Evergreen High School Mock Trial Program, Attorney Coach (2006 - 2007)
• International Baccalaureate Parent Association, Secretary, Lakewood High School (2008 - 2009)
• Jeffco School District Strategic Plan Advisory Council, Chairing the Committee (2007 - 2008)

Scholarly Lectures and Writings:

• Faculty Member, Avoid Extinction Due to Climate Change, Colorado Trail Lawyers Annual Convention, 2014
• Regular contributor to quarterly consumer focused publication., Contributor, The Safety Report, Injury Board, 2010
• Faculty Member, Ethics Hot Topics: Internet Marketing, Attorney’s Fees and Attorney Fee Agreements, Colorado Bar Association CLE Program, 2009
• Faculty Member, The Business of Practicing Law, Colorado Bar Association/CLE Seminar, 2007
• Presenter, Focused Marketing of Multiple Practice Areas, FindLaw Webinar, WEST, 2006
• Faculty, Trial Advocacy Program - Ethics Section, Colorado Trial Lawyers Association Annual Conference, 2003
• Faculty Member, Preventing Legal Malpractice 2001, Colorado Bar Association/CLE Seminar, 2001
• Faculty Member, Ethics 2001, Continuing Legal Education Conference, 2001
• Author, Restitution in Criminal Actions: Consideration for Civil Trial Lawyers, Trial Talk , Colorado Trial Lawyers Association, 2001
• Co-author, The Nine Commandments of Malpractice Prevention, Trial Lawyer, American Association For Justice, 1999
• Co-author, Ski Law for Beginners, Intermediates and Experts, Trial, August, 2001

Verdicts and Settlements:

• Luz Maria Madrigal v. City of Greeley - This was a pedestrian-vehicle accident that occurred in 2014. Plaintiff Luz Madrigal is visually impaired. She and her companion, Zach Dreicer (also visually impaired) were crossing 11th Avenue for the Southeast corner of 22nd Street. An Audible Pedestrian Signal (“APS”) had been installed at the intersection. It is essentially undisputed that the APS was malfunctioning the night of the accident. According to Mr. Dreicer, a visually impaired pedestrian would rely on silence to signal that the traffic displays were red. Due to the malfunction, Ms. Madrigal was struck by a vehicle. She was severely injured and diagnosed with multiple life-threatening traumatic injuries including: traumatic brain injury; bilateral pulmonary contusions; multiple right rib fractures; a complex pelvic fracture; a Grade I renal contusion; a Grade I liver laceration; a right tibia fibula fracture; a basilar skull fracture with subdural hematoma; and multiple facial fractures. Ms. Madrigal required extensive hospitalization during which time she underwent multiple procedures and surgeries. Following her hospitalization, she was discharged to an inpatient, rehabilitation center in California where she underwent various forms of therapy. Ms. Madrigal continues to receive medical care and evaluation related to her injuries. She has not fully recovered. In February 2017, the case settled for $350,000.00., 2017
• Jury Verdict for Mother Run Down by Snowboarder (Summit County) - Our client, Natalie Sexton, was skiing at Copper Mountain in March 2009, when a snowboarder collided into her.  The force of the impact fractured both bones in Mrs. Sexton's lower left leg.  The fractures had to be repaired surgically, with internal fixation. Mrs. Sexton recovered well, however, the snowboarder denied liability.  We tried the case in front of a jury in August 2010.  The jury rendered a verdict in the amount of $75,000 ($10,000 for disfigurement and impairment, $40,000 for economic damages, and $25,000 for non-economic damages).     , 2010
• Breast Cancer Cases - Ms. Chalat routinely reviews breast cancer cases, and has successfully represented victims of failure to diagnose and misdiagnosis. In each case, the claims were settled prior to trial with a very restrictive confidentiality clause, prohibiting publication of details of the claims.  READ about our case covered by the New York Times: "Prone to Error: Earliest Steps to Find Cancer", 2010
• TBI Victim Suffers $1.1 Million Loss - Assistant principal at an Aurora middle school slipped in a puddle of glycol which had been leaking from the ceiling of a classroom. The glycol was leaking from a pipe in the ceiling, which had recently been installed as a part of a retrofit of the school’s entire HVAC system. Our client fell, striking her head first on the edge of a large, wooden teacher’s desk, and then on the tile floor. She suffered a traumatic brain injury. Claims were filed against the mechanical engineering firm who designed the HVAC system and the mechanical company who installed the system. The matter settled for a confidential amount weeks before trial., 2009
• C.D. vs. P.K. (minor) - C.D. and her family were standing in clear view on the Sugar N' Spice trail, at the Sierra-at-Tahoe ski resort. The trail was marked with numerous "slow" signs advising skiers and riders to proceed slowly. The defendant, P.K., was traveiling at a high rate of speed when he executed a jump and collided with C.D., knocking her to the ground, rendering her unconscious, and inflicting a traumatic brain injury (TBI). Although a witness reported that P.K. left the scene, he admitted that he was "going pretty fast" despite the clear speed markings. Ms. Dinh was unconscious and unresponsive during the entire evacuation to Washoe Medical Center. She was diagnosed with a severe closed head injury (sub-arachnoid hemorrhage-right, sub-dural hemorrhage on left causing a 5 mm shift left to right), plus a Level III liver injury. She required respiratory support in the ICU for 36 hours and was extubated after 72 hours. Ultimately, she was discharged with a diagnosis of TBI and cognitive deficits. Her medical costs totaled:$235,088.77. In July 2006, the case settled for $700,000.00., 2006
• $778,200 Damages for Loss of Arm - Defective design of ski resort "Magic Carpet" results in traumatic amputation of arm. During the trial, the parties reached a confidential settlement, 2003
• $325,000 Settlement for Hand Injury - Defective lab equipment injures lab tech, nearly amputating her hand. Manufacturer of equipment settles before trial., 2001

Other Outstanding Achievements:

• Interviewed by KJCT8, Grand Junction, CO, on her ski safety blogging and tips for skiing safety, 2011
• Jeffco PTA Jane Hammond Award Recipient, 2009

Video:

• Chalat Hatten & Banker in the News

Educational Background:

• Colorado School of Mines, B.S. in Chemical Engineering, 1983