Parenting time in Colorado, from first filing to final plan

1. Know the standard

Colorado courts decide parenting time and decision-making based on the best interests of the child, and the child's safety is always paramount. Everything you present should connect back to your children's day-to-day needs.

Source: Colorado Judicial Branch, Parental Responsibility Evaluators.

2. Protect the status quo while the case is pending

In a divorce or legal separation case, Colorado's automatic court orders, listed on the summons, say not to take the children out of the state without the other parent's permission or a court order. They last until the case is finalized, dismissed or changed. Either parent can ask the court for temporary orders while the case is pending.

Source: Colorado Judicial Branch, JDF 1012 Summons.

3. Build the plan around real life

A plan that works covers more than the weekly rotation. Before you agree to anything, decide:

• The regular school-year schedule, and whether summer changes it
• Holidays, birthdays and three-day weekends, and how they alternate
• Where and when exchanges happen, and who drives
• How the parents communicate, and how fast they respond
• How major decisions get made, and what happens when you disagree
• Travel notice, passports and phone or video time

Test the weekly rotation, holidays and summer in the schedule planner first. It shows how many exchanges each pattern creates and lays out the whole year. Colorado's official form for all of this is JDF 1113, Parenting Plan; our walkthrough of the form explains each section.

Source: Colorado Judicial Branch, JDF 1113 Parenting Plan.

4. If the court appoints an investigator or evaluator

A Colorado Child & Family Investigator (§14-10-116.5, C.R.S.) or a Parental Responsibility Evaluator (§14-10-127, C.R.S.) investigates the disputed parenting issues and gives the court a written report. Treat every interview and home visit as part of the evidence. Be on time, be specific, keep the focus on the children, and never coach them.

Attorney Liken serves as a court-appointed Colorado Child & Family Investigator himself, and offers a $699 one-hour report review. The firm also publishes a directory of Colorado Child & Family Investigators.

Sources: Child and Family Investigators; Parental Responsibility Evaluators.

5. After the orders

Follow the plan exactly, keep a calendar of parenting time actually exercised, and keep communication in writing. If life changes, a schedule can be changed by agreement or by the court. If a parent wants to move, read our relocation explainer. See the firm's guides to modifications, relocation and child support.