Colorado Divorce Checklist: Forms, Filing, and Disclosures

A Colorado divorce checklist starts with one non-negotiable: at least one spouse must have lived in Colorado for 91 days before filing, and the court cannot finalize the case until another 91 days have passed after your spouse is brought into it.¹ Between those two dates you file a petition and case information sheet, pay a $260 fee, arrange service on your spouse (unless you file jointly), exchange sworn financial disclosures, and, if you have minor children, add a parenting plan, child support worksheet, and completion certificate from a parenting class. Colorado is a no-fault state; the only ground is that the marriage is irretrievably broken.

Residency and the Only Legal Ground

You or your spouse must have been domiciled in Colorado for 91 consecutive days immediately before filing.¹ Domicile is more than being physically present; you need to show Colorado is your permanent home. A driver’s license, lease, utility bills, or testimony can establish it.

Colorado does not recognize fault-based grounds. Both spouses can affirm the marriage is irretrievably broken, or one spouse can state it alone. If the other spouse denies it, the court may continue the case for 35 to 63 days to allow counseling before making its own finding.²

Documents That Open the Case

The document that actually starts your case is the Petition for Dissolution of Marriage, form JDF 1101. It identifies whether you are filing alone as Petitioner or together with your spouse as Co-Petitioners.³ Filing jointly removes the need for formal service later, so if you and your spouse are on speaking terms, it’s the cleaner route.

Along with the petition, you file a Case Information Sheet (JDF 1000). It collects Social Security numbers, dates of birth, mailing addresses, and contact information for both spouses. If there are children under 19 from the marriage, their names, dates of birth, and Social Security numbers go on this form too.⁴

If you are not filing jointly, add a Summons for Dissolution of Marriage (JDF 1102), which formally notifies your spouse the case exists.³ Your spouse can bypass service by voluntarily signing a Waiver of Service (JDF 1102(a)) acknowledging receipt of the papers. Every form mentioned here is available free on the Colorado Judicial Branch website. Check names, dates, and addresses carefully before you file. Errors on these forms cost time.

Filing Fee, Service, and the 91-Day Clock

The filing fee is $260.⁵ Pay at the clerk’s office or through electronic filing if you have counsel. If you cannot afford the fee, apply for a waiver.

When you file separately, your spouse has to be formally served. You have three options: the county sheriff, a private process server, or any adult over 18 who is not a party to the case.⁶ You cannot hand the papers to your spouse yourself. Private servers typically charge between $50 and $200.

The mandatory 91-day waiting period does not begin when you file. It begins when the court gains jurisdiction over your spouse, which happens through personal service, your spouse joining as a Co-Petitioner, or your spouse otherwise appearing in the case.¹ Every day that service is delayed pushes the whole timeline back.

The Automatic Temporary Injunction

The moment your spouse is served, or the moment you both file as Co-Petitioners, an automatic temporary injunction takes effect against both of you. It stays in place until the final decree or a court order lifts it.⁷ Nobody asks for it; it happens automatically, and the language appears on the summons and petition so both parties see it. Violating it can lead to contempt.

The injunction restricts both spouses in four ways:

Neither spouse can transfer, hide, or dispose of marital property without the other’s written consent or a court order, except for ordinary living expenses and usual business transactions.
Neither spouse can harass or disturb the peace of the other.
Neither parent can remove minor children from Colorado without the other parent’s consent or a court order.
Neither spouse can cancel, modify, or let lapse any health, homeowner’s, renter’s, auto, or life insurance policy covering either spouse or the children without at least 14 days’ written notice to the other spouse and their consent or a court order.⁷

Draining a joint account, canceling your spouse’s health coverage, or taking the kids on an out-of-state trip while the case is pending are the moves that trigger enforcement and hurt your credibility with the judge.

Financial Disclosures

Under Rule 16.2, both spouses must produce a Sworn Financial Statement (JDF 1111, also known as Form 35.2) detailing gross monthly income from every source, monthly expenses, assets, and debts. Income counts wages, bonuses, commissions, self-employment earnings, investment returns, and government benefits.⁸

The mandatory disclosure checklist (Form 35.1, JDF 1125) lists the supporting documents you must hand over:

Federal personal and business tax returns for the three years before filing, with all schedules, W-2s, 1099s, and K-1s.
Pay stubs and income statements for the current and prior calendar year. Self-employed parties provide a sworn statement of gross income, business expenses, and net income for the three months before filing.
The most recent statements for every bank and financial institution account.
Any personal or business financial statements, asset/liability statements, or loan applications prepared in the last three years.⁹

If you hold business interests, multiple properties, or other complex assets, complete Supporting Schedules (JDF 1111SS) and attach them to the Sworn Financial Statement.¹⁰ The court uses these disclosures to divide property and set support. Hiding assets can result in sanctions and can reopen a case years after the decree.

What Property Gets Divided

Colorado divides marital property in proportions the court considers just, which is not automatically 50/50. The judge first sets aside each spouse’s separate property, then divides the marital property based on each spouse’s contribution to acquiring it (including as a homemaker), the value of property assigned to each spouse, each spouse’s economic circumstances at the time of division, and changes in the value of separate property during the marriage.¹¹

Marital property means everything either spouse acquired during the marriage, regardless of whose name is on the title. Gifts, inheritances, and property excluded by a valid agreement like a prenup are the main exceptions.¹¹ If you owned an asset before the marriage but its value grew during the marriage, that appreciation may be treated as marital. Premarital investment accounts often trip people up for exactly this reason.

Spousal maintenance may also come up. Colorado publishes an advisory formula that applies when the marriage lasted at least three years and combined annual adjusted gross income is $240,000 or less; above that, the court exercises broad discretion.¹² The guidelines are advisory only, and the court can deviate based on the financial resources of each spouse, the property division, and the standard of living during the marriage.

The Extra Checklist When You Have Kids

Minor children add three filings to the list.

Parenting Plan

File a Parenting Plan (JDF 1113) covering where the children will live, how parents will share decision-making for education, healthcare, extracurricular activities, and religious upbringing, and a detailed schedule for weekdays, weekends, holidays, and school breaks. The plan also has to describe how children physically move between homes.¹³ Parents can submit an agreed plan or each file a proposal for the court to decide. Joint decision-making and equal parenting time are separate questions; you can have one without the other.

Child Support Worksheet

Colorado calculates child support with a state formula that accounts for both parents’ gross income, the number of overnights the child spends with each parent, health insurance premiums, and daycare expenses. Support obligations to children from other relationships factor in as well.¹⁴ You complete a Child Support Worksheet to produce the number, and the court generally enters the guideline amount unless a party shows a deviation is appropriate.

Parenting Class

Both parents must complete a court-approved parenting class focused on helping children through divorce, and you have to file the certificate of completion before the court will enter a final decree.¹⁵ Each judicial district maintains its own list of approved providers, and most offer an online option. A missing certificate can push your finalization date back, so schedule the class early.

Health Insurance and Retirement Accounts to Line Up

Divorce ends your eligibility for a spouse’s employer-sponsored health plan. It is a qualifying event under COBRA, giving you the right to continue coverage if you notify the plan administrator within 60 days of the divorce.¹⁶¹⁷ COBRA can last up to 36 months, but you pay the full premium plus a 2% administrative fee. Compare individual plans on the Colorado marketplace before the decree so you are not stuck if COBRA is too expensive. Remember the automatic injunction protects the existing coverage only while the case is open; that protection ends the day the decree is entered.

Retirement benefits earned during the marriage are marital property. To split a 401(k), pension, or similar employer-sponsored plan, you need a Qualified Domestic Relations Order (QDRO), a separate court order directed at the plan administrator. Federal law requires the QDRO to identify the participant and alternate payee by name and address, specify the dollar amount or percentage, state the number of payments or the period covered, and name each retirement plan involved.¹⁸ A QDRO is not part of the standard divorce forms; it usually needs a specialized attorney or QDRO service, and the plan administrator has to approve it before any funds move. IRAs do not require a QDRO. They can be divided through a transfer incident to divorce, but the decree must specifically authorize the split.

If Either Spouse Is on Active Military Duty

The Servicemembers Civil Relief Act lets an active-duty spouse pause the divorce. The service member can request a stay of at least 90 days by submitting a letter explaining how military duties prevent them from appearing, along with a letter from their commanding officer confirming leave is not authorized. The court must grant this initial stay when those conditions are met.¹⁹ Additional stays can be requested if service continues to prevent participation. If the court denies a further stay, it must appoint an attorney to represent the absent service member. These protections are not automatic; the service member or their attorney has to request them.

1
Justia. Colorado Code 14-10-106 – Dissolution of Marriage – Legal Separation
2
Justia. Colorado Code 14-10-110 – Irretrievable Breakdown
3
Judicial Legal Help Center. Step 2 – File
4
Colorado Judicial Branch. JDF 1000 – Case Information Sheet
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Colorado Judicial Branch. List of Fees
6
Colorado Judicial Branch. How to Serve Court Papers in Divorce and Custody Cases
7
Justia. Colorado Code 14-10-107 – Pleadings – Automatic Temporary Injunction
8
Colorado Judicial Branch. JDF 1111 – Sworn Financial Statement – Form 35.2
9
Colorado Judicial Branch. JDF 1125 – Mandatory Disclosure Form 35.1
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Colorado Judicial Branch. JDF 1111 SS – Supporting Schedules for Assets
11
Justia. Colorado Code 14-10-113 – Disposition of Property
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Justia. Colorado Code 14-10-114 – Spousal Maintenance – Advisory Guidelines
13
Colorado Judicial Branch. JDF 1113 – Parenting Plan
14
Colorado Child Support Services. Calculating Payments
15
Colorado Judicial Branch. Parenting Classes
16
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 29 USC 1163 – Qualifying Event
17
U.S. Department of Labor. FAQs on COBRA Continuation Health Coverage for Workers
18
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 29 USC 1056 – Form and Payment of Benefits
19
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 50 USC 3932 – Stay of Proceedings When Servicemember Has Notice