Venue In Colorado Divorce

Are you involved in a Colorado divorce? An experienced Colorado Springs divorce and child custody lawyer can guide you through the legal process and assist you in exploring your options. You have one bite at the apple in the court system so make it count.

In Colorado, venue for domestic relations actions are governed by C.R.S. 14-10-107 and C.R.C.P. 98. Venue is generally proper in the county where one of the parties resides, as determined by C.R.C.P. 98. However, “Civil actions, including domestic relations cases, should be tried in the county where the defendant resides at the commencement of the action, unless otherwise specified.” C.R.C.P. 98. Actions concerning the allocation of parental responsibilities,

should be filed in the county where the child is located. C.R.S. 14-10-123. Courts may transfer venue for good cause shown. C.R.S. 13-1-123.5. The transferring court must notify all parties and transmit the case documents to the receiving court. C.R.S. 19-3-201.

Sometimes one or both parties relocate outside of a county where an action was previously heard. Venue does not automatically change if the parties relocate to other counties. If a court in one county has heard a matter, a change of venue can be requested on motion or by stipulation in order to change the venue. If a case is filed in a county where venue is not proper, the action is subject to transfer to the court that has proper venue. A venue change may be requested on motion or by stipulation of the parties and must be approved by the court. It is not sufficient to simply file a follow-on action in a different county, even if all parties have left the county.

A highly knowledgeable and experienced Colorado Springs divorce and child custody lawyer can guide you through Colorado Springs divorce and child custody matters by negotiating, mediating and litigating on your behalf. You can focus on moving to a better future instead of spending your time attempting to navigate complex legal rules and procedures.

Sabra Janko from Janko Family Law has more than 20 years of legal experience and has written “the book” on Colorado divorce and family law – “Colorado Family Law With Forms”, published by LexisNexis, which you can find at https://store.lexisnexis.com/products/colorado-family-law-with-forms-skuSKU02903. Contact us at 719-344-5523 or complete our online scheduling request for a free 30-minute informational consultation. We also offer paid advice sessions for a more in-depth analysis of your case.