Divorce in Colorado
How divorce works in Colorado, step by step
No fault to prove, one form to file, 91 days minimum, and a set of deadlines that run whether or not you are ready. Here is the whole process in order, with the current form numbers and what each step means for the house.
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No fault. One ground.
The court only has to find the marriage “irretrievably broken.” Nobody has to be blamed.
91 days in Colorado
One spouse must have lived in Colorado for 91 days before filing. Children need 182 days for parenting orders.
91 days before a decree
The judge cannot sign until 91 days after the other spouse is served or the joint petition is filed.
3 to 6 months if agreed
Contested cases with a house, retirement accounts and kids commonly run a year or more.
You (or both of you together) file a Petition for Divorce (JDF 1011) with the district court in the county where either of you lives and pay $260. The other spouse is served and has 21 days to respond. An automatic injunction takes effect on both of you. Within 42 days you exchange sworn financial statements and documents, and the court holds an initial status conference. You settle by written agreement (most people do) or go to mediation and then a hearing. The earliest a judge can sign the decree is 91 days after service. The decree is final when entered.
The steps, in order
1. Check residency
One of you has been domiciled in Colorado for 91 days. For orders about children, the children have lived here 182 days (or since birth).
2. File the petition
JDF 1011 Petition for Divorce or Legal Separation, plus the case information sheet, in the district court for your county. Fee $260. Co-petitioners file one petition together and there is no response fee.
3. Serve, or waive service
If you filed alone, your spouse is served with the summons (JDF 1012) by a process server or sheriff, or signs a waiver (JDF 1013). The clock starts here.
4. The automatic injunction
On filing (for the petitioner) and on service (for the respondent), both of you are barred from selling, transferring, hiding or borrowing against marital property, from cancelling insurance, and from taking the children out of state without consent or an order. What it covers.
5. Respond within 21 days
The respondent files JDF 1015 (fee $146) within 21 days of service in Colorado, 35 days if served out of state. No response can mean a default.
6. Disclose within 42 days
Both spouses file a Sworn Financial Statement (JDF 1111) and exchange the Rule 16.2 documents: three years of tax returns, pay stubs, bank, retirement and debt statements, and real estate documents. Certificate of compliance is JDF 1104.
7. Initial status conference
Held within 42 days of filing (or a stipulated case management plan is filed). The court sets deadlines and may order the parenting class and mediation.
8. Temporary orders, if needed
Who lives in the house, who pays the mortgage, temporary support and parenting time while the case is open. Ask early if the bills are a problem.
9. Settle or mediate
Most cases end in a written Property and Financial Agreement (JDF 1115) and, with children, a Parenting Plan (JDF 1113). Courts commonly require mediation before a contested hearing. Your options.
10. Decree
After 91 days, an agreed case can often finish on paper (JDF 1018 affidavit, JDF 1019 decree) without a hearing. A contested case goes to a permanent orders hearing. The decree is final when entered.
11. After the decree
Deeds, refinancing by the deadline, retirement orders (QDROs; Colorado PERA has a 90-day rule), beneficiary changes, name restoration (JDF 1824, free within 60 days). The mortgage after divorce.
Legal separation instead?
Same process and forms, but you stay legally married. Either spouse can convert it to a divorce after 182 days. Some people use it for health-insurance or religious reasons.
Where the house shows up in the process
- Day one: the injunction. Nobody lists, refinances or takes a HELOC without written consent or an order.
- Day 42: the sworn financial statement asks for the house’s value and the mortgage balance. Get a written valuation before you guess. What is it worth.
- Temporary orders: who stays and who pays the mortgage during the case. A missed payment hits both credit reports.
- The agreement: sell and split, buyout by a date, or transfer title and refinance by a date. The state’s form (JDF 1115) has a blank for each. The four options.
- The decree: the refinance deadline starts running. Sixty to ninety days is common. What happens if it is missed.
Questions people ask on this page
Do I need a lawyer to get divorced in Colorado?
No. Many uncontested Colorado divorces are done with the court’s forms and the self-help center. If there is a house, retirement accounts, a business, children, or one spouse who will not cooperate, at least a consultation with a family-law attorney is worth the money. Limited-scope (unbundled) representation is allowed in Colorado, so you can hire a lawyer for one piece.
Does it matter who files first?
Legally, very little. The petitioner pays the $260 and picks the county if you live in different ones. The injunction hits the petitioner on filing and the respondent on service.
What is the difference between a co-petition and being served?
Co-petitioners file together, pay one fee, and the 91 days start on filing. If one files alone, the other is served and the 91 days start on service.
How long does a Colorado divorce really take?
Agreed cases with the paperwork done: about 91 days to 6 months. Contested cases: commonly 9 to 18 months, longer if experts or custody evaluations are involved.
Can we still live in the same house during the divorce?
Yes, and many couples do to save money. Nothing requires either spouse to move out. If it is not safe, the court can grant exclusive possession under temporary orders.
Is common-law marriage still a thing in Colorado?
Yes. Colorado recognizes common-law marriage (both spouses 18 or older, mutual agreement and conduct as a married couple), and a 2026 bill reaffirmed it. A common-law marriage ends through the same divorce process.
Where to go next
- The Colorado divorce process
- What a divorce costs in Colorado
- Just served? Start here
- Maintenance (alimony) in Colorado
- Mediation, collaborative or court
- The divorce checklist
- Your county court
- What happens to the house
- The virtual workshop
- Help lines and self-help centers
- Do-it-yourself divorce in Colorado on kennarealestate.com
- Call or text 303-955-4220: a live person answers
Call your Colorado divorce agent
Questions about the house, the deed or the decree?
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Ask us about the house
Tell us where you are in the process and what you are trying to figure out. We will answer honestly, including when the honest answer is to wait. Free, confidential, and nobody sells you anything.
Call or text 303-955-4220
A live person answers. Not a robot, not a phone tree. Prefer email? homes@kennarealestate.com
Ready to sell or buy? Kenna Real Estate Group handles the house.
- Real estate and divorce in Colorado: divorce realtors in every Front Range city and county
- Divorce and real estate articles on kennarealestate.com
Call or text 303-955-4220. A live person answers.
