Schafer v. Hoffman
Colorado Supreme Court
831 P.2d 897 (1992)
An intoxicated Larry Schafer (defendant) struck pedestrian Shirley Hoffman (plaintiff) with his car, causing a spinal compression fracture, a concussion, a fractured femur, and other leg and knee injuries. Schafer admitted negligence but argued at trial that Hoffman's pre-existing medical conditions -- she had seen a doctor before the accident for pain in the same areas -- should bar or reduce her recovery, and objected when the judge allowed a 'thin skull' jury instruction letting the jury award damages without discounting for Hoffman's physical frailties; the jury awarded Hoffman $715,000, and the court of appeals affirmed.
Whether, under the thin-skull rule, a negligent defendant may seek to avoid or reduce the damages owed to a plaintiff by claiming the plaintiff suffered from pre-existing medical conditions.