Background:
Corine Lebourdais filed a claim against the Public Guardian and Trustee (PGT) as administrator of the estate of Carlo Rupert Eugene Asquini. She sought damages for property losses caused by flooding from Cherry Creek in May 2017. Lebourdais alleged negligence and nuisance, claiming that a dislodged culvert installed by the PGT diverted the creek and damaged her land.

Legal Arguments and Issues:

• Negligence: The plaintiff alleged the PGT failed to meet the standard of care in installing and maintaining a culvert under the Water Act and its regulations. The court assessed whether the culvert’s size, design, or maintenance breached standards.
• Nuisance: Lebourdais argued the PGT caused unreasonable interference by failing to remove the dislodged culvert, which she claimed redirected Cherry Creek’s flow.
• Causation: The court examined whether the culvert’s failure caused the flooding and property damage under the “but for” test.

Court Findings:

• The court held that the plaintiff failed to prove the PGT breached its standard of care in installing or maintaining the culvert.
• The court found no evidence that the dislodged culvert caused the flood or diverted Cherry Creek’s flow.

Outcome:
The court dismissed Lebourdais’ claims in negligence and nuisance. The judgment did not award damages. Costs were awarded to the PGT, subject to submissions if the parties could not agree.

Costs:
The parties were granted time for written submissions on costs, with timelines specified for filing responses and replies.