benjamin.bakula@wilsonelser.com

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Benjamin Bakula practices in a broad range of civil litigation matters including general liability, construction defect and employment litigation. Benjamin has represented a wide variety of companies and insurers from pre-litigation matters to resolution. 

Prior to joining Wilson Elser, Benjamin worked at defenses firms in Colorado and Missouri. He handled workers’ compensation claims and complex toxic tort claims.

    Education

    • University of Missouri School of Law (J.D., 2014)
    • University of Indiana (B.S. Marketing and Legal Studies, 2011)

    Bar Admissions

    • Colorado
    • Illinois
    • Missouri

    Professional Affiliations

    • Colorado Bar Association
    • Colorado Defense Lawyers Association

Benjamin Bakula

Williams and Bakula Obtain Defense Verdict in Jury Trial on No Negligence

Ryan Williams (Partner-Denver, CO) and Benjamin Bakula (Associate-Denver, CO) secured a defense jury verdict in the Seventeenth Judicial District Court, Adams County, Colorado, in favor of their clients, a custom landscaping company and its employee. In this personal injury action, the plaintiffs alleged that, during a winter storm in December 2019, the employee of the landscape company negligently operated a snowplow that crossed into their lane of travel, causing a side-to-side collision and resulting in their claimed personal injuries. The plaintiffs asserted claims for negligence, negligence per se, negligent hiring and supervision, and negligent entrustment. Ryan and Ben established, through expert testimony, that the accident could not have occurred as described by the plaintiffs, and that any force applied to the plaintiffs’ vehicle was likely insufficient to have caused the alleged injuries. After deliberations, the jury returned a defense verdict, finding that Wilson Elser’s clients were not negligent. The company, its employee, and their insurer will seek recovery of all litigation costs, which exceed six figures.

Ryan A. Williams and Benjamin Bakula

Ellenberger, Yvars & Bakula Challenge Causation and Credibility to Secure Pre-trial Dismissal

The Denver, Colorado, team of Laura Ellenberger (Of Counsel), Chris Yvars (Partner), and Benjamin Bakula (Associate) secured a complete pre-trial dismissal in a case where the plaintiff initially demanded $5 million for alleged injuries from a claimed hit-and-run accident involving a delivery van displaying the branding of a well-known international corporation. Although third-party video captured the incident, the team’s investigation raised concerns that the accident may have been staged. Through aggressive discovery and proactive investigation, they uncovered the plaintiff’s history of injury claims and identified strikingly similar allegations of injury. Armed with this evidence, they successfully challenged causation and credibility. The Denver District Court dismissed all claims before trial and ordered reimbursement of our client’s defense costs.

Laura J. Ellenberger, Christopher D. Yvars and Benjamin Bakula