Opinion ID: 2498587
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Prospective Application of Section 10-1-135

Text: ¶ 9 Petitioners argue that the trial court improperly applied section 10-1-135 retroactively to this 2008 case because Smith's negligence claim accrued, and Smith's insurer paid the medical expenses resulting from the accident, prior to the statute's August 11, 2010 effective date. We disagree. ¶ 10 A statute is presumed to operate prospectively absent clear legislative intent that it apply retroactively. § 2-4-202, C.R.S. (2011); Ficarra v. Dep't of Regulatory Agencies, 849 P.2d 6, 14 (Colo.1993). This means that a statute applies to transactions that take place after the section's effective date unless the legislature clearly intends otherwise. In re Estate of DeWitt, 54 P.3d 849, 854 (Colo.2002). ¶ 11 The transaction to which section 10-1-135 pertains is a  recovery made on or after the applicable effective date of the act. Ch. 164, sec. 2 ¶ 2, § 10-1-135, 2010 Colo. Sess. Laws 575, 580 (emphasis added); see also, ¶ 1 (effective date of section 10-1-135 is August 11, 2010). Thus, section 10-1-135 will apply to this action if recovery was pending as of August 11, 2010. The legislature defines recovery for the purposes of section 10-1-135 as a monetary award from a third party through either settlement or judgment to compensate an injured party for bodily injury sustained as a result of an act or omission of the third party. § 10-1-135(2)(d). Recovery has yet to occur in this case because the parties have not settled, nor has the trial court issued a final judgment. As such, section 10-1-135 applies to this action because recovery remains pending. ¶ 12 The trial court did not improperly apply section 10-1-135 retroactively because the statute's applicability does not hinge on the dates of transactions such as the accrual of claims or the payment of medical expenses. See ch. 164, sec. 2, § 10-1-135, 2010 Colo. Sess. Laws 575, 580. Rather, the statute applies to cases resulting in recoveries occurring after August 11, 2010. Id. Because the relevant transactionrecoverywas pending as of the effective date of the statute, the trial court did not abuse its discretion by applying section 10-1-135.