Court Opinion

ID: 9792797
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-31 02:36:45.818095+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T07:36:16.934319
License: Public Domain

Chief Judge STERNBERG
dissenting.
I agree with much of what the majority writes: in Colorado, standing may be acquired after a complaint is filed, but before trial; and, the purpose of C.R.C.P. 17(a) is to prevent a defendant from facing duplicative suits on the same claim. Where I part company with the majority is its holding that the only way in which a claim for relief may be transferred is by “assignment.”
In my view, our law does not require so restrictive an interpretation. The eases relied upon by the majority demonstrate that real party in interest status may be acquired after a complaint is filed. Here, there was a court-approved written stipulation providing that the suit could be prosecuted by plaintiffs, and agreeing for a sharing of attorney fees and division of any recovery. That language is the functional equivalent of an assignment.
Because the defendant had no exposure to a second suit on the claim, the purpose of the requirement of standing, as explained in Wright, Miller & Kane, supra, is served by recognizing the efficacy of the stipulation.
By placing form over substance, the majority takes away from plaintiffs’ compensation for damage they sustained by defendant’s actions, while allowing defendant to escape unscathed and unpunished for the wrongs they perpetrated.
I would affirm the judgment.