Biography
Deva Solomon is the trial lawyer trusted with the cases that matter most to the firm’s clients. He confidently manages complex, high-stakes litigation, discovery, and negotiations to provide firm clients with peace of mind when confronted with lawsuits. He often serves the role of outside general counsel to the firm’s clients and is seen as a trusted advisor. Over his career, he has successfully won cases at trial with more than $100 million at stake.
Deva is the Practice Group Leader for the firm’s Professional Liability Group, which defends professional liability clients such as hospitals, nursing homes, physicians, nurses, lawyers, accountants, architects, and engineers on a national scale. He has extensive experience defending nursing homes, physicians, nurses, hospitals, and he has also defended attorneys in legal malpractice and breach of fiduciary duty claims.
He also has extensive experience representing energy companies in multiple shale plays and has taken a variety of cases to trial to protect the interests of energy companies for royalty, contract, tort, and operational issues.
In addition to his trial and professional liability work, Deva is often called to accident scenes or to other incidents for emergency response. His practice involves the defense of claims of all types involving significant injury and death. He earns clients’ trust by listening to them, understanding their businesses, and developing their strategy as a team.
When he is not at the office, Deva loves to ski, mountain bike, hike, run (if something dangerous is chasing him), and enjoy the outdoors with his wife, two children, and two dogs.
Representative Experience
- Lead trial counsel in cases worth a total of more than $100 million to clients
- As lead counsel, won jury trial for large international metal manufacturing client in dispute over indemnification responsibilities worth over $1 million from late 1980s acquisition agreement
- As lead trial counsel, won bench trial for energy client in dispute with two other energy companies over ownership of oil and gas interests in North Dakota and successfully defended verdict on appeal before North Dakota Supreme Court in Zavanna, LLC v. GADECO, LLC et al. 994 N.W.2d 133 (ND 2023)
- Lead trial counsel in six-day jury trial defending employee of oil field service provider in case involving double thumb amputation on well pad
- Won summary judgment on behalf of energy company in quiet title involving in excess of 65 parties and resolving the distribution of over $15 million in revenue
- Achieved victory in lawsuit on behalf of energy company defending it against allegations of improper deduction of post-production expenses
- Defended long term care facility in arbitration proceeding (through verdict) in premises liability case
- Defended nursing home in wrongful death jury trial to verdict
- Defended long term care facilities in COVID 19 litigation in State, Federal District Court, and Appellate Courts involving claims of immunity under the PREP ACT
- Won motions to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction for parent companies of nursing facilities in three different states
- Successfully Defended long term care facilities in wrongful death and resident care litigation in three different states
- Verdict following trial for client of $1.5 million plus in breach of contract dispute over Joint Operating Agreement obligations between two energy companies
- Represented company in wrongful death litigation involving workplace accident in coal mine
- Verdict for client in excess of $1 million in dispute over contract to purchase bitcoin
- Argued on behalf of government agency before Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia
Education
- J.D. West Virginia University College of Law
- B.A. West Virginia University
Memberships
- Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce, Health Care
- Committee Denver Petroleum Club
- Leadership West Virginia Class of 2014
- Colorado Defense Lawyers Association
- Colorado Bar Association, Ethics Committee
- Defense Research Institute
- Sponsorship Chair for 2017 Defense Research Institute Civil Rights and Governmental Tort Liability Seminar
- Completed University of Virginia Trial Advocacy College
- The Order of the Coif, WVU College of Law
- Phi Beta Kappa
- United States Courts of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, Third Circuit, DC Circuit, and Fourth Circuit
- United States District Courts for the District of Colorado, the District of North Dakota, the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, the Northern District of West Virginia, and the Southern District of West Virginia
Achievements
- Super Lawyers Rising Stars®, Personal Injury – General: Defense Law, E-Discovery Law, Business Litigation Law, Personal Injury – Medical Malpractice: Defense Law, Professional Liability: Defense Law, Denver, CO (2017, 2018 – 2019)
- Super Lawyers Rising Stars®, Personal Injury – General: Defense Law, E-Discovery Law, Business Litigation Law, Personal Injury – Medical Malpractice: Defense Law, Professional Liability: Defense Law, Bridgeport, WV (2015-2016)
Speaking Engagements
- “Developments in Colorado, North Dakota, Wyoming, and Montana Law, Which Could Impact Lease and Title Analysts,” National Conference, National Association of Lease and Title Analysts, September 2018
- Deva Solomon & David R. Little, “To Speak with the Lawyers, Press 2: An Interactive Discussion Introducing the Litigation Process, Current Hot Topics, and How Engineers Can Help Reduce Risk,” Society of Petroleum Engineers International (Denver Chapter), May 2017
- Deva Solomon & David R. Little, “The Lawyers are at it Again: How to Save Your Lease when Operations are Shut Down and Associated Issues,” Denver Association of Lease and Title Analysts Spring Seminar, May 2017
- “An Introduction to Nuisance Law Across the Country as Applied to Large Industrial Facilities”, Nat’l Association of Railroad Trial Counsel, February 3, 2017, Snowmass, CO
- Deva Solomon & David R. Little, “Litigation 101 for Lease and Title Analysts,” Denver Association of Lease and Title Analysts, April 2016
Webinar