Aspen Condo Dispute Over Emotional Support Dog Heads Back to Court

Ongoing Legal Battle

ASPEN, Colo. — A dispute over a 6½-pound emotional support dog at an upscale Aspen condominium has escalated into a court fight that has already reached the Colorado Supreme Court twice.

The case centers on Laurie Aronson, a part-time Aspen resident, who is suing the Aspen Mountain Residences after the condo association sought to enforce its no-pets policy. Aronson argues she is entitled to keep her maltipoo, named Aspen, as a disability accommodation.

Contempt Allegations

Pitkin County District Court Judge Elise Myer ordered Aronson to appear Oct. 10 to address claims she violated a prior injunction. That July 2024 order allowed her dog to stay only when she was present.

The condo association contends Aronson ignored the restriction, citing security footage, staff reports and photographs. Filings allege she left the dog alone at least 11 times in July, including eight consecutive days. Staff also reported that Aspen urinated and defecated on carpets while unattended.

“The directive is unambiguous: Plaintiff may not leave her dog, Aspen, unattended at the property,” the association’s attorneys wrote in an Aug. 8 filing.

Through her lawyer, Eric Maxfield, Aronson has said she will oppose the contempt motion. A formal response is due by Sept. 4.

Disability Rights at Issue

The case highlights the legal differences between service animals, which receive protections under the Americans with Disabilities Act, and emotional support animals, which do not. Instead, owners of emotional support animals may rely on federal and state housing laws that require “reasonable accommodations” for disabilities.

Aronson filed suit in June 2024, alleging violations of both the Colorado Fair Housing Act and the federal Fair Housing Amendments Act. She says the condo board retaliated against her after she sought an exemption, including by threatening fines, discussing her disability publicly, and warning her reservations could be canceled.

Earlier this summer, Judge Myer sided with Aronson in part, ruling that the condo’s fractional ownership model does not exempt it from housing laws. She found Aronson qualified as disabled under the law and that her dog served as a reasonable accommodation. Still, she limited the injunction to forbid leaving the dog unattended.

Dispute Over Medical Exam

The case has also been slowed by a dispute over whether Aronson must undergo an independent medical exam. Myer ordered the exam earlier this year, but Aronson petitioned the Colorado Supreme Court to block it, calling it an unnecessary invasion of privacy.

The high court temporarily paused the case before denying her petition. In doing so, it also suppressed two letters from Aronson’s physician supporting her need for an emotional support animal.

At an Aug. 11 hearing, Judge Myer noted the exam should have been done by the end of April. She set a new deadline of Sept. 18 for Aronson to comply, either in Aspen or Denver.

Next Steps

Aronson, who bought her Aspen unit in the early 2000s, says she relied on the association’s earlier allowance for emotional support animals when she obtained her dog in 2020. The association changed its policy in 2022 to ban them.

She is seeking more than $25,000 in damages, plus punitive damages, legal fees, and a permanent injunction allowing her dog to stay.

At the Aug. 11 hearing, Judge Myer stressed the need for resolution. “This needs to get done at this point so we can move this case along and understand where we’re going,” she said.