Title 19, Children's Code

(1) The petition and all subsequent court documents in any proceedings brought under this article shall be entitled "The People of the State of Colorado, in the Interest of ______________, a child (or children) and Concerning _______________, Respondent." The petition shall be ve…

(1) After a petition has been filed, the court shall promptly issue a summons reciting briefly the substance of the petition. The summons shall also contain a statement, when appropriate, that the termination of the parent-child legal relationship is a possible remedy under the p…

(1) Any person summoned or required to appear as provided in section 19-3-503 who has acknowledged service and fails to appear without reasonable cause may be proceeded against for contempt of court. (2) If after reasonable effort the summons cannot be served or if the welfare of…

(1) At the adjudicatory hearing, the court shall consider whether the allegations of the petition are supported by a preponderance of the evidence; except that jurisdictional matters of the age and residence of the child shall be deemed admitted by or on behalf of the child unles…

(1) (a) If it appears from the evidence presented at an adjudicatory hearing or otherwise that a child may have an intellectual and developmental disability, as defined in article 10.5 of title 27, the court shall refer the child to the case management agency, as defined in secti…

(1) (a) After making an order of adjudication, the court shall hear evidence on the question of the proper disposition best serving the interests of the child and the public. Such evidence shall include, but not necessarily be limited to, the social study and other reports as pro…

(1) When a child or youth has been adjudicated to be neglected or dependent, the court may enter a decree of disposition the same day, but in any event it shall do so within forty-two days, unless the court finds that the best interests of the child or youth will be served by gra…

This part 6 shall be known and may be cited as the "Parent-Child Legal Relationship Termination Act of 1987". Source: L. 87: Entire title R&RE, p. 787, § 1, effective October 1.

(1) Termination of a parent-child legal relationship shall be considered only after the filing of a written motion alleging the factual grounds for termination, and termination of a parent-child legal relationship shall be considered at a separate hearing following an adjudicatio…

Before a termination of the parent-child legal relationship based on abandonment can be ordered, the petitioner shall file, only if the location of a parent remains unknown, an affidavit stating what efforts have been made to locate the parent or parents of the child subject to t…

(1) The court may order a termination of the parent-child legal relationship upon the finding by clear and convincing evidence of any one of the following: (a) That the child has been adjudicated dependent or neglected and has been abandoned by the child's parent or parents as fo…

(1) Following an order of termination of the parent-child legal relationship, the court shall consider, but shall not be bound by, a request that guardianship and legal custody of the child be placed with a relative of the child. When ordering guardianship of the person and legal…

(1) The court, at the conclusion of a hearing in which it ordered the termination of a parent-child legal relationship, shall order that a review hearing be held not later than ninety days after the date of the termination. At such hearing, the agency or individual vested with cu…

(1) An indigent parent has the right to have appointed one expert witness of his or her own choosing whose reasonable fees and expenses, subject to the review and approval by the office of the respondent parents' counsel, shall be paid by the state of Colorado pursuant to section…

(1) An order for the termination of the parent-child legal relationship divests the child and the parent of all legal rights, powers, privileges, immunities, duties, and obligations with respect to each other, but it shall not modify the child's status as an heir at law which sha…

(1) Appeals of court decrees made under this part 6 shall be given precedence on the calendar of the appellate court over all other matters unless otherwise provided by law. (2) Whenever an appeal is made under this part 6, an indigent parent, upon request, shall be provided a tr…

The general assembly shall make annual appropriations to the office of the respondent parents' counsel for the purpose of meeting the expenses of sections 19-3-607 (1) and 19-3-609 (2). Source: L. 87: Entire title R&RE, p. 791, § 1, effective October 1. L. 2016: Entire section am…

(1) The general assembly finds that, for various reasons, some children are not adopted after the termination or voluntary relinquishment of the parent-child legal relationship and in some cases might benefit from a reinstatement of the parent-child legal relationship if the form…

(1) (a) In order to provide stable, permanent homes for every child or youth placed out of the home, in as short a time as possible, a court shall conduct a permanency planning hearing. The court shall hold the permanency planning hearing as soon as possible following the initial…

(1) The court shall conduct a periodic review at least every six months and, at the periodic review, shall determine the following: (a) Whether the child's or youth's safety is protected in the placement; (b) Whether reasonable efforts have been made to find safe and permanent pl…

(1) A party may request the court to determine whether a youth is an incapacitated person, as defined in section 15-14-102. The motion must be filed with the court prior to the youth's eighteenth birthday. (2) If there has been a determination, or if a determination is pending, t…

(1) When a youth turns eighteen years of age while the youth is a named child or is a youth in a dependency and neglect case open through this article 3, the court shall hold a transition hearing within thirty-five days after the youth's eighteenth birthday. The purpose of the tr…

This article shall be known and may be cited as the "Uniform Parentage Act". Source: L. 87: Entire title R&RE, p. 793, § 1, effective October 1.

As used in this article, "parent and child relationship" means the legal relationship existing between a child and his natural or adoptive parents incident to which the law confers or imposes rights, privileges, duties, and obligations. "Parent and child relationship" includes th…

(1) Any reference in the statutes, administrative rules, court rules, government policies, common law, and any other provision or source of law in this state to an "acknowledgment of paternity" means an "acknowledgment of parentage", as described in this section. (2) Unless the c…

The parent and child relationship extends equally to every child and to every parent, regardless of the marital status of the parents. Source: L. 87: Entire title R&RE, p. 793, § 1, effective October 1.

The parent and child relationship may be established between a child and the natural mother by proof of her having given birth to the child or by any other proof specified in this article, between a child and the natural father pursuant to the provisions of this article, or betwe…

(1) A person is presumed to be the natural parent of a child if: (a) The person and the parent who gave birth to the child are or have been married to each other or are in a civil union pursuant to article 15 of title 14, and the child is born during the marriage or civil union, …

(1) All proceedings under this article shall be commenced in the manner provided by the Colorado rules of civil procedure or as otherwise provided in this section or section 26-13.5-104, C.R.S. (2) Upon commencement of a proceeding under this article by one of the parties, the ot…

(1) In any existing case commenced under this article, if it is alleged that another child has been conceived of the parents named in the existing case, that child shall be added to the existing case if at least one of the presumptions of paternity specified in section 19-4-105 a…

(1) If, with the consent of another intended parent, an intended parent consents to become pregnant through an assisted reproductive procedure, the intended parent who does not give birth is treated in law as the natural parent of the child conceived. The consent of both the inte…

(1) A child, his or her natural mother, or a man presumed to be his or her father pursuant to section 19-4-105 (1)(a), (1)(b), or (1)(c) or the state, the state department of human services, or a county department of human or social services, pursuant to article 13 or 13.5 of tit…

(1) (a) An order determining parentage pursuant to this article shall be modified or set aside, within the time frames specified in subsection (2) of this section, if genetic test results based on DNA testing, administered in accordance with section 13-25-126, C.R.S., establish t…

When filing a proceeding under this article, the filing party shall have a duty to disclose to the court the existence of any prior temporary or permanent civil protection orders to prevent domestic abuse issued pursuant to article 14 of title 13, C.R.S., and any emergency protec…

An action to determine the existence of the father and child relationship may be brought at any time prior to the child's eighteenth birthday by the mother or father of said child, by the child, or by the delegate child support enforcement agency. If, however, the statute of limi…

(1) Without limiting the jurisdiction of any other court, the juvenile court has jurisdiction of an action brought pursuant to this article 4. The juvenile court's jurisdiction includes concurrent jurisdiction with a dependency and neglect court, as set forth in section 19-3-205 …

The child may be made a party to the action. If the child is a minor, the court may appoint a guardian ad litem. The child's mother or father may not represent the child as guardian or otherwise. The court shall make the natural mother, each man presumed to be the father under se…

(1) As soon as practicable after an action to declare the existence or nonexistence of the parent-child relationship has been brought, an informal hearing shall be held if it is determined by the court to be in the child's best interest. The court may order that the hearing be he…

(1) Upon motion of the court or any of the interested parties, genetic tests or other tests of inherited characteristics shall be ordered and the results received in evidence, as provided in section 13-25-126. Upon agreement of the mother and the presumed or alleged father or fat…

(1) Evidence relating to paternity may include: (a) Evidence of sexual intercourse between the mother and alleged father at any possible time of conception; (b) An expert's opinion concerning the statistical probability of the alleged father's paternity based upon the duration of…

(1) On the basis of the information produced at the pretrial hearing, the judge or magistrate conducting the hearing shall evaluate the probability of determining the existence or nonexistence of the father and child relationship in a trial and whether a judicial declaration of t…

An action under this article is a civil action governed by the Colorado rules of civil procedure. The mother of the child and the alleged father are competent to testify and may be compelled to testify. Sections 19-4-111 (2) and (3), 19-4-112, and 19-4-113 apply. Source: L. 87: E…

(1) The judgment or order of the court determining the existence or nonexistence of the parent and child relationship is determinative for all purposes. (2) If the judgment or order of the court is at variance with the child's birth certificate or if the court enters a judgment o…

The court shall order reasonable fees of counsel, experts, and the child's guardian ad litem and other costs of the action and pretrial proceedings, including genetic tests, to be paid by the parties in proportions and at times determined by the court. In any action brought pursu…

(1) If existence of the father and child relationship is declared, or paternity or a duty of support has been acknowledged or adjudicated under this article or under prior law, the obligation of the father may be enforced in the same or other proceedings by the mother, the child,…

(1) The court has continuing jurisdiction to modify or revoke a judgment or order: (a) For future education and support; and (b) With respect to matters listed in sections 19-4-116 (3) and (4) and 19-4-118 (2); except that a court entering a judgment or order for the payment of a…