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JURY AWARDS HOMEOWNERS NEARLY
ONE MILLION IN NOISE COMPLAINT SUIT
Award is first of its kind in Colorado

LITTLETON, CO— June 27, 2005–An Arapahoe County District Court jury awarded three homeowners over half a million dollars in damages for construction defects in their condominium based on noise complaints-the first award of its kind in Colorado.

The plaintiffs, residents of Arlington at Riverwalk, a condominium project near the intersection of Santa Fe Drive and Bowles Avenue in Littleton, had brought suit against BCORP-HRT LLC and BCORP Arlington LLC claiming construction defects resulted in direct transmission of sound into their units from other units and made their life unbearable for years. In a precedent setting move, the jury awarded the homeowners damages in excess of the entire value of each of their units, and rejected the claims of the defendants that noise is a mere nuisance for which no claim is available.

"This case marks a new type of personal injury claim in Colorado--one based on noise as the principal factor," said plaintiffs' trial co-counsel David P. Hersh of Burg Simpson Eldredge Hersh & Jardine, P.C. "The verdict sends a clear message to builders that construction defects that interfere with the quiet enjoyment of life won't be tolerated." Total damages, including contract attorneys fees, interest and court costs, are expected to bring the value of the verdict to close to one million dollars.

Thirteen other homeowners also afflicted by the sound transmission problem settled with the defendants shortly before the trial started. The settlement value of those claims is confidential.

"This case was great vindication for the homeowners," said plaintiffs' co-counsel David K. TeSelle. "These folks had to suffer through five years of hearing ordinary daily living sounds from other units that were so clear that you would have thought the noises emanated from within their own unit. It drove these people to distraction, and worse, it was a tremendous indignity to them."

The jury also found that the units were not built to code for either sound transmission or fire. Four years after the certificates of occupancy were issued, the homeowners' attorney's investigation revealed that the building had not been constructed according to the plans and specifications submitted by BCORP to the city. This resulted in deviations from both the fire and sound provisions of the local building code. Once this error was brought to the attention of the Littleton building department, repairs to correct the fire code violations were mandated. While repairs have been made for fire protection, these units still do not have valid certificates of occupancy and require a complete re-inspection for building compliance, according to an independent code inspector hired by the city and paid for by BCORP.

Media Contact:
David Hersh
Burg Simpson Eldredge Hersh & Jardine, P.C.
303-792-5595

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Burg Simpson Eldredge Hersh & Jardine, P.C. is a law firm serving the Rocky Mountain Region. The firm has offices in Denver, Colorado, Cody, WY, Cincinnati, Ohio, & Phoenix, AZ. The Firm is responsible for the content on the website,this information is not to be interpreted as providing legal services,
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