Mike Ogborn

Partner

Mike is an experienced courtroom lawyer who has tried cases in numerous states. He is the past President of the Colorado Trial Lawyers Association and a Colorado Super Lawyer® in Business Litigation. The National Trial Lawyers have included him in the list of the Top 100 Trial Lawyers. He has been recognized by Best Lawyers in multiple categories since 2022. Mike has tried approximately 200 jury trials to verdict.

Areas of Practice

Business Torts & Fraud
Commercial & Contract Litigation
Construction Litigation
Corporation, Partnership & LLC Disputes
Insurance Disputes
Personal Injury & Wrongful Death
Medical Device and Product Litigation
Mass Torts
Brain Injury & Concussion
Burn Injury
Automobile Accident
Product Liability
Spinal Cord Injury

Contact Info

303.592.5900

303.592.5910

Mike.Ogborn@OMTrial.com

Contact

Education

University of Denver Sturm College of Law, J.D.
University of Colorado at Boulder, B.A. in English

Bar Admissions

Colorado
Nebraska
South Dakota
U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado
U.S. District Court for the District of Nebraska
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
U.S. District Court for the District of South Dakota

Experience

After the Utah office of a large national law firm mishandled a client’s subdivision application for an 8,650-acre ranch near Park City, Utah, causing the client to lose 40% of its valuable density rights, Mike was an instrumental part of the trial team that obtained one of the largest legal malpractice jury verdicts in recent U.S. history. The jury awarded all of the $21.36 million that Michael requested at trial, but assessed 40% comparative fault against the client, thus reducing the award to $12.8 million. The trial court recently awarded an additional $1.46 million for prejudgment interest. 910 Cattle Company v. Stoel Rives, LLP, Case No. Civil No. 100907407, Third District Court, Salt Lake County, Utah.

Experience

A medical device manufacturer represented by the Firm was facing a number of mass tort products liability lawsuits and relied upon its insurance company to defend and provide settlements when appropriate to plaintiffs. The insurance company failed to perform as it should have and the Firm sued the insurer for bad faith. The case involved hundreds of thousands of documents and the team at Ogborn Mihm, LLP was able to obtain a significant settlement for the client.

Experience

A South Dakota real estate agent and financial advisor representing an elderly couple talked them into rejecting a number of qualified offers for a large ranch the couple owned. Instead, the agent had the couple sell the ranch to the agent for approximately half the amount that had been offered by other potential purchasers. Mike Ogborn and his partner, Murray Ogborn, presented the case to a jury in Burke, South Dakota and received a verdict in favor of the clients in the amount of $1,568,200. On remand after appeal, the total award to the client was in excess of $2,000,000 (inclusive of costs and prejudgment interest).

Experience

A managing partner of a small business resigned after just over a year in business because it was not profitable. The remaining partner paid for keeping the business going and took over management of the business. When the business started to cash flow, the partner that resigned returned to allege the remaining partner had mismanaged the business thereby causing losses of over a million dollars. The case was tried in arbitration and no monetary damages were awarded to the partner who resigned and sued.

Experience

When the Director of a non-profit organization was defamed and wrongfully terminated from the Board, despite a sizable donation to allow the non-profit to begin construction on a new facility, Mike filed suit for wrongful discharge and defamation. The jury found that the nonprofit Butterfly Pavilion breached a contract with its founder/Director and defamed his character. The jury awarded the Director $400,000 for the breach of contract and $150,000 for defamation of character. The jury also awarded $150,000 in punitive damages, finding that he was defamed with malice. Weissmann v. Butterfly Pavilion.

Experience

When a construction company discovered that all of its aluminum forms had been stolen, and reported a claim to its insurance company, the company’s insurance carrier denied the claim and refused to reimburse the company for the loss of the forms. Mike brought suit for insurance bad faith. After a jury trial, the insurance carrier was found to have breached the insurance contract in bad faith and the construction company was awarded in excess of $900,000.00.

Litigation can be brutal. Too often, individuals and businesses suffer needlessly because lawyers insist on doing things “the same old way.” Not with us. Not with Mike. Mike’s trademark is his relentless pursuit of new and better answers. His hallmark is the recognition that better answers come only with understanding. Not just surface familiarity but a true appreciation of your world. Mike takes the time to listen, to answer questions, and to ask questions. He doesn’t just ask, “Where do you want to go?” He gets you there. As a young lawyer, Mike honed his courtroom presence as a deputy district attorney in Denver, Colorado. Now, as a civil trial lawyer, Mike focuses his practice on business litigation, personal injury, and construction litigation. Mike brings his leadership and presence to obtain significant verdicts and settlements for his clients.

Mike has been involved in litigation cases in courts across the country, including Florida, New Jersey, Ohio, Indiana, South Dakota, Nebraska, Colorado, Utah, Arizona, and California.

Mike understands that not all cases should be tried, but each case should be prepared as if it will be tried in a courtroom to give the client the best opportunity to achieve a fair or adequate result.

As a former President of the Colorado Trial Lawyers’ Association (CTLA), Mike led Colorado’s largest plaintiff and consumer law association. For more than a decade, Mike Ogborn has been involved in resolving controversies, as well as grassroots activities in his community. He has served in various community roles, including being president of his HOA and elected vice president of the Metropolitan District for his community. Mike and three other neighbors solidified community support by selling bonds to raise funds to scrape an outdated and malfunctioning community pool and replace it with a new, active, and vibrant community center, which has a new pool and new tennis courts. Mike has coached kids in almost every sport they play as they grow up. In recent years, he has been happy to hang up his cleats and be a mere spectator.

Awards

Associations

President, Colorado Trial Lawyers Association, 2013-2014
Board of Directors, Colorado Trial Lawyers Association, 2001 - Present
Leadership Forum, American Association for Justice
State Delegate, American Association for Justice
Member, American Board of Trial Advocates
Member, The National Trial Lawyers
Member, American Association for Justice

Articles

“Our Viking Longboat, CTLA President’s Update,” Trial Talk, Vol. 62, Issue 5, Aug/Sept 2013.

“Right to Jury Trial in Civil Cases, CTLA President’s Update,” Trial Talk, Vol. 62, Issue 6, Oct/Nov 2013.

“Policies and Legislation, CTLA President’s Update,” Trial Talk, Vol. 63, Issue 1, Dec/Jan 2014.

Presentations

“The Millennial Juror,” Western Trial Lawyers Association Conference (Summer 2017).

The Modern-Age of Dictation, AAJ Technology Seminar (January 2025).

**This Website, including the material presented on the Website, is for informational purposes only. It is not intended to be legal advice, nor does this website or any information gathered or downloaded from the site create or establish an attorney-client relationship between you and the Firm. We make no representations or warranties regarding the information provided on this Website, and we assume no liability or responsibility for any errors or omissions in content. Previous results are not a guarantee or promise of future results or case outcomes. Additionally, submitting an inquiry through the website does not create an attorney-client relationship, though submissions are confidential.

Mike Ogborn

Partner

Areas of Practice

Contact Info

Education

Bar Admissions

Experience

Experience

Experience

Experience

Experience

Experience

Awards

Associations

Articles

Presentations

Colorado Office

California Office

South Dakota Office

Wyoming Office