Hiring a Child Custody Lawyer in Colorado
How courts in Colorado decide custody, emergency custody, parenting classes, how to check a lawyer's license, and free or low-cost family law help. We do not recommend or rank lawyers.
What a lawyer costs in Colorado: fee rules
| Rules on contingency fees | Colorado's former contingent fee rules (C.R.C.P. Chapter 23.3) were repealed and reenacted in Colo. RPC 1.5(c), effective January 1, 2021. The terms of a contingent fee agreement must be communicated in writing before or within a reasonable time after the representation begins and must include, among other things: the names of lawyer and client; the claim and each event that triggers the lawyer's right to be paid; how the fee is figured, including the percentage or amounts on settlement, trial, appeal or other final disposition and whether it is computed before or after deducting costs and other amounts owed; what the lawyer may be paid if the representation ends early; an estimate of expenses, whether the lawyer may advance them and the client's obligation to pay expenses if there is no recovery; the possibility of court-awarded costs or fees against or in favor of the client; and the client's rights if the lawyer brings in associated counsel. Colorado's Rule 1.5(d) prohibits domestic relations fees contingent on securing a divorce or on the amount of alimony, support or property settlement, and contingent fees for representing a criminal defendant. Repeal of C.R.C.P. 23.3: https://www.coloradojudicial.gov/sites/default/files/2023-06/Rule_Change_2020-31.pdf |
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| If you disagree with a lawyer's bill | The Colorado Bar Association's Legal Fee Arbitration Committee provides a service to help lawyers and clients resolve fee disputes, as referenced by the Office of Attorney Regulation Counsel. Colorado Bar Association committee: http://www.cobar.org/For-Members/Committees/Legal-Fee-Arbitration-Committee |
| If a lawyer takes your money | Colorado's Attorneys' Fund for Client Protection may compensate clients who lost money or property because a Colorado-licensed attorney, acting as their lawyer or court-appointed fiduciary, received and converted it. Fee disputes, poor investments and malpractice are not covered. The limit is $50,000 per claim, with an aggregate maximum of $100,000 for all claims against a single attorney; no interest is paid. Claims must be filed within three years of when you knew or should have known of the dishonest conduct. There is no filing fee; the claim form must be signed and notarized. Fund page: https://www.coloradolegalregulation.com/complaints/cpf/ |
Colorado rules to know first
| How custody is decided | Colorado uses the terms parental responsibilities, parenting time and decision-making, decided by the child's best interests with the child's safety paramount. Factors include the parents' wishes, the child's wishes if mature enough to express reasoned and independent preferences, the child's relationships with parents and siblings, adjustment to home, school and community, the mental and physical health of everyone involved (a disability alone is not a basis to limit parenting time), each parent's ability to encourage the child's relationship with the other, and domestic violence or child abuse. State policy encourages frequent and continuing contact with both parents in most cases. No fixed age is set for the child's wishes. Source: C.R.S. § 14-10-124 |
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| Emergency custody | In a divorce, legal separation or parental responsibilities case, either party may ask for temporary orders, including temporary parental responsibilities and child support, supported by an affidavit; the court considers the child's best interests. Either party can also ask for a temporary order stopping the other from molesting or disturbing the peace of the other party or any child. Under the interstate custody law, a Colorado court has temporary emergency jurisdiction if the child is in Colorado and has been abandoned, or emergency action is needed because the child, a sibling or a parent is being mistreated or abused or threatened with it. |
| Parenting classes | A court may order a parent of a child under 18 who is a party to a divorce, legal separation, or parental responsibilities case to attend a program on the impact of separation and divorce on children. The Judicial Branch lists accepted co-parenting class providers by county and refers to a co-parenting class requirement. |
| Grandparents' rights | A grandparent or great-grandparent may ask the court for reasonable grandparent family time when there is or has been a custody or parental responsibilities case involving the child. The request is filed in the district where the child lives with a supporting affidavit and notice to the parties; the court grants family time only if it finds it is in the child's best interests, after a hearing if either party requests one. Source: C.R.S. § 14-10-124.4 |
Find and check a lawyer
| Lawyer referral service | The Colorado Bar Association does not give legal advice or run a referral line; it offers a Find a Lawyer directory of member attorneys searchable by legal matter, location or name, with a filter for attorneys accepting "alternative fee arrangements" for people with moderate incomes. CBA offices: 303-860-1115, Monday-Friday, 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Contact page: https://www.cobar.org/contact |
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| Check that the lawyer is licensed | The Office of Attorney Regulation Counsel, an independent office of the Colorado Supreme Court, runs the Attorney / LLP Search & Disciplinary History tool. Search by registration number or by first and last name to see a lawyer's (or licensed legal paraprofessional's) status and disciplinary history; a lawyer must have "active" status and be in good standing to practice in Colorado. Copies of Presiding Disciplinary Judge decisions and orders are linked as a courtesy. |
| Check discipline history or file a complaint | Complaints (requests for investigation) about Colorado lawyers go to the Office of Attorney Regulation Counsel's central intake division, by phone at (303) 457-5800 or toll-free (877) 888-1370, or through its online complaint form. Unsolicited emails and anonymous complaints are not accepted. An intake attorney or investigator contacts you, on average within 7 to 14 days. Have ready your contact details, the lawyer's name and registration number, relevant dates, and any court case numbers. Disciplinary history appears in the office's attorney search. |
Free legal help
| Free legal aid | Colorado Legal Services, the LSC-funded legal aid program for Colorado, gives free civil legal help to eligible low-income people in family, consumer/debt, housing, senior, government benefits, immigration and other civil matters (not every office handles every case type). Apply with the online intake form at coloradolegalservices.org or call your local office. The courts' local Self-Help Centers answer questions about court cases and forms. CBA page: https://www.cobar.org/For-the-Public/What-to-do-if-you-need-a-Lawyer |
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Last verified against official sources: October 27, 2026.
How we source this page: each state-specific rule links to the statute, court rule or official government page it comes from. A rule taken from a public copy of a state code (used only where the official code is not freely readable online) is marked as a secondary source. Spot an error? Use the contact page to report it. About our sources
General legal information, not legal advice. Laws change and local rules can differ; check the linked official source or talk to a lawyer about your situation.