Divorce in Colorado — the plain-English overview

Colorado has one of the most modernized divorce statutes in the country: pure no-fault, a single cooling-off period that doubles as the residency clock, and the retirement of the word "custody" in favor of "parental responsibilities." The rules below shape almost every Colorado divorce. None of this replaces talking to a Colorado family-law attorney about your specifics, but knowing the starting framework helps you read your own paperwork.

Where you file

Colorado divorces — formally dissolution of marriage proceedings — are filed in the District Court of the county where either spouse lives. At least one spouse must have been a Colorado resident for 91 days before the petition is filed (C.R.S. § 14-10-106).

District Court is the trial court of general jurisdiction in Colorado. Denver, El Paso (Colorado Springs), Arapahoe, Jefferson, and Adams counties handle the largest family-law caseloads. Each judicial district has its own local rules and family-court calendar.

How long it takes

Colorado runs a 91-day cooling-off period that overlaps with the residency clock. The court cannot enter a decree of dissolution earlier than 91 days after (1) the filing of the petition by both spouses jointly, or (2) the service of the petition on the respondent when one spouse files alone — under the same statute that sets the residency rule, C.R.S. § 14-10-106.

Colorado's only ground is that the marriage is irretrievably broken. There are no fault grounds. If one spouse alleges that the marriage is irretrievably broken and the other doesn't deny it, the court accepts the finding.

Property — what state law assumes

Colorado is an equitable distribution state. The court divides marital property — generally, what was acquired by either spouse during the marriage — in a manner the court finds equitable (C.R.S. § 14-10-113). The statute lists factors including the contribution of each spouse to the acquisition of the marital property, the value of property set aside to each spouse, the economic circumstances of each spouse at the time of division, and any increase or decrease in the value of separate property during the marriage.

The "appreciation of separate property" rule is one of Colorado's distinctive features: even when an asset itself stays separate, the growth in its value during the marriage joins the marital pot.

Custody — the starting framework

Colorado retired the word "custody" in 1998. The current framework is allocation of parental responsibilities under C.R.S. § 14-10-124, which divides into two parts:

• Decision-making responsibility — for major decisions about education, healthcare, and religious upbringing. Can be joint or sole.
• Parenting time — the schedule for when the child is with each parent.

The statute lists best-interest factors including the wishes of the parents and child, the interaction of the child with parents, siblings, and other significant people, the child's adjustment to home, school, and community, the mental and physical health of all involved, the ability of each parent to encourage the child's relationship with the other parent, the past pattern of involvement, physical proximity of the parents, and any history of child abuse, neglect, or domestic violence. There's no statutory presumption favoring equal parenting time, but Colorado courts generally favor frequent and continuing contact with both parents.

Filing fees and fee waivers

The District Court filing fee for a Colorado dissolution petition is approximately $230 statewide. The responding spouse pays a separate response fee (around $116).

If you can't afford the fee, Colorado lets you file a Motion to File Without Payment under C.R.S. § 13-16-103 using JDF 205. You provide an affidavit of your income, household expenses, and assets; if granted, the court waives the filing fee and certain other court-imposed costs.

What this page can't tell you

Colorado's 22 judicial districts run dissolution practice with some local variation:

• Whether your district requires alternative dispute resolution (ADR) before a contested final hearing (many do).
• Local rules on Initial Status Conferences — the early case-management meeting that's standard statewide but scheduled and run differently across districts.
• Whether your county uses family court facilitators for self-represented parties (Denver and Arapahoe do; smaller counties may not).
• The specific parent-education program your district approves.

The Colorado Judicial Branch (coloradojudicial.gov) hosts statewide forms (the JDF series), self-help resources, and procedural guides. Your county's Combined Court Clerk is the authoritative source for local rules and fee schedules. For anything strategic — especially around equitable distribution, maintenance, or contested parenting time — talk to a Colorado family-law attorney.

Statutes referenced

• Residency — C.R.S. § 14-10-106
• 91-day cooling-off period — C.R.S. § 14-10-106
• Equitable distribution — C.R.S. § 14-10-113
• Allocation of parental responsibilities — C.R.S. § 14-10-124
• Motion to file without payment / fee waiver — C.R.S. § 13-16-103

These are the controlling statutes for the facts on this page. State law changes; the linked text always reflects current law.