Source: https://www.omtrial.com/attorneys-profiles/thomas-neville
Timestamp: 2019-04-20 20:36:09+00:00

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When an insurance company unreasonably refused to settle a lawsuit against its insured, Thomas wrote the appellate briefs and successfully argued before the Colorado Supreme Court in the seminal Nunn v. Mid-Century Ins. Co., 244 P.3d 116 (Colo. 2010). In the decision, the Supreme Court adopted Thomas’ legal argument and decided that an insured defendant whose insurance company unreasonably refuses to settle a claim may enter into a stipulated judgment in excess of policy limits so that the insured can protect himself/herself and assign the bad faith claim to the claimant.
In Calderon v. American Family Mut. Ins. Co., 383 P.3d 676 (2016), Thomas wrote an amicus brief arguing that the Supreme Court should interpret Colorado’s medical payments statute to be harmonious with the unambiguous language of Colorado’s Uninsured/Underinsured Motorist Insurance statute. As a result, insurance companies can no longer collect multiple premiums for these coverages while reducing the benefits received by their insureds.
In Bedor v. Johnson, 2013 CO 4, 292 P.3d 294 and Kendrick v. Pippin, 252 P.3d 1052 (2011), Thomas was a key advocate in convincing the Colorado Supreme Court to abolish the archaic “sudden emergency doctrine,” which allowed individuals who had negligently injured others to avoid taking responsibility for their actions by claiming that everyday events, like encountering icy roads, constituted unforeseeable emergency situations.
Beyond these cases, Thomas’s handiwork can be found behind the scenes of many of Ogborn Mihm’s noteworthy cases, including Davies v. City of Lakewood, Case N. 14-CV-01285, McKinley Medical, LLC v. Medmarc Cas. Ins. Co., Case No. 11-CV-01218, and Deborah Shpall, et al. v. Jay Chapman, Esq., et al., Case No. 2013CV32307, District Court, City and County of Denver, State of Colorado.
Thomas grew up in Alaska, where he got his first taste of legal work as a student attorney with the Anchorage Youth Court. Educated at Gonzaga University, he spent six months studying at Oxford University, where he discovered his passion for the law. Thomas graduated from the University of Denver, Sturm College of Law in the top 10% of his class. After graduating from law school, he spent two years working as a law clerk for the Colorado Court of Appeals. Following his clerkship, Thomas went to work with Murray and Mike Ogborn in 2005. His analytical and writing skills make him well suited to address complex, technical issues.
Thomas has been an active member of the Colorado Trial Lawyers Association (CTLA) since 2006. In 2010, he was asked to co-chair CTLA’s Amicus Curiae (Friend of the Court) committee. Members of the Amicus Committee donate their time to support plaintiffs who have appellate issues with far reaching impact for the people of Colorado. In 2011, he was elected to CTLA’s Board of Directors and has served in that capacity ever since. He has also volunteered to review legislation for members of the Colorado General Assembly and has testified before the legislature on bills related to the regulation of insurance companies. Thomas’ time on CTLA’s amicus committee and with the legislature ensure the interests of the public are protected. In addition to his work with CTLA, Thomas was selected as one of twenty participants in the Colorado Bar Association’s Leadership Training (COBALT) program for 2018.
Thomas serves as the Cubmaster for Pack 203, a Cub Scout Pack chartered out of the Susan Duncan YMCA. In that capacity, he oversees a group of more than 70 students between the ages of 5 and 11, who are learning about leadership, character, and citizenship. A self-described “geek,” Thomas enjoys playing video and board games with his wife and two sons (when he has time).
Boyle N. and Neville T., “Open and Accepting Your Requests for Amicus Curiae Assistance,” Trial Talk, February/March 2012.
Nunn v. Mid-Century Ins. Co., 215 P.3d 1196 (Colo. App. 2008).
Nunn v. Mid-Century Ins. Co., 244 P.3d 116 (Colo. 2010).
Kendrick v. Pippin, 252 P.3d 1052 (Colo. 2011) (for amicus curiae Colorado Trial Lawyers Association).
Qwest Services Corp. v. Blood, 252 P.3d 1071 (Colo. 2011) (for amicus curiae Colorado Trial Lawyers Association).
Cloer v. Secretary of Health and Human Services, 654 F. 3d 1322 (Fed. Cir. 2011) (for amicus curiae Colorado Trial Lawyers Association).
Accident & Injury Medical Specialists, P.C. v. Mintz, 279 P.3d 658 (Colo. 2012) (for amicus curiae Colorado Trial Lawyers Association).
Bedor v. Johnson, 292 P.3d 924 (Colo. 2013) (for amicus curiae Colorado Trial Lawyers Association).
Bailey v. Duling, 827 N.W.2d 351 (S.D. 2013).
Successfully argued for the recognition of the Nunn agreement, a mechanism which permits an insured whose insurer is acting in bad faith to protect him or herself by assigning any bad faith claims to the injured party in exchange for a covenant not to execute on a stipulated judgment.
Represented a consulting firm in a dispute between it and a software development firm which had charged hundreds of thousands of dollars to design and program software that never functioned.
Represented a medical device manufacturer in a bad faith breach of insurance contract suit against its insurer arising out of the mismanagement of an eroding limits policy in a nationwide mass tort case.
Editor of chapter about Appellate Malpractice in the treatise Lawyers’ Professional Liability in Colorado.
Achieved favorable settlement of uninsured motorist case for young woman seriously injured in head-on car crash.
Colorado Trial Lawyers Association—Case of the Year Finalist in 2012.
Traveled to Guatemala to work for Habitat for Humanity for two weeks.

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