A Democrat measure that removes a hurdle to frivolous employment lawsuits passed in the Senate today on second reading, although Republicans were able water down the measure by limiting its impact to 'big' business.

Senate Bill 117, authored by Sen. Bob Bacon, D-Fort Collins, awards an employee legal fees and court costs if he sues his employer and wins -- but will no longer extend that courtesy to employers. The bill throws out the current “loser-pay system,” which makes the losing party in a lawsuit responsible for paying the legal fees of the other side.

“This tilts the playing field to one side,” said This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it , R-Wray, prior to the final vote. “It takes away the loser-pay provision and encourages frivolous lawsuits against small business, because there’s no downside to employees filing an action. We have a fair playing field, so let’s keep it that way.”

This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it , R-Fruita, agreed and added that the prevailing party in a lawsuit is entitled to compensation, and SB 117 changes that format.

“It takes away any discretion of the court to award plaintiff fees to small business,” he said.

Bacon claimed his bill attempts to create a situation for those with low income to have access to the legal system. But the proposal also allows for additional lawsuits to be filed by employees, thus creating more work and a boon for the pockets of trial attorneys.

Former Senate Majority and Minority Leader Mark Hillman, R-Burlington, explained that Colorado has historically never taken sides in disputes between labor and business.

"Unfortunately, this bill does just that by wrongly assuming that an employee will never take advantage of the system," Hillman said. "And more often than not, a problem is not driven by the employee, but by the employee's attorney."

A critic of SB 117 suggested that it would leave in place an incentive for employers to not fight claims, but it also removes an incentive against employees filing frivolous claims.

“The loser-pays system discourages employees from filing claims that they know are unfounded, and it discourages employers from fighting claims they know they can’t beat,” said Jeff Weist, director of the Colorado Civil Justice League, a tort reform advocacy group. “It provides the right balance for a fair legal system.” 

An amendment was offered by This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it , R-Fort Collins,  which limited SB 117 to only include large business. The amendment passed along with SB 117, which is scheduled Thursday for third-reading consideration by the full Senate.