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If you file the petition for divorce, the court will call you the petitioner.  If you are the other party to the divorce that did not file the petition, you will be called the respondent.  Unless the parties to a divorce initiated the case together, the petitioner will have to serve (have a third party personally deliver) the petition and signed summons (either by the court clerk if you do not have an attorney or your attorney) to the respondent/spouse.  The petitioner is also responsible for scheduling the initial status conference and sending notice of the initial status conference to the respondent.  See C.R.C.P. 16.2(c)(1)(A).  At the initial status conference, the court or family court facilitator will determine the major issues involved and the timeline for the case.  See C.R.C.P. 16.2(c)(2).  The typical issues involved in a divorce are property division, parenting time with children, decision-making responsibility for the children, child support, and maintenance or alimony.

 

If you are self-represented, it is important to request a temporary orders hearing at the initial status conference.  If you and your spouse can come to an agreement about how much time each parent should spend with the children and whether and how much child support or maintenance should be paid by one of the parties to the other, you do not need to have a temporary orders hearing and you can ask the court to adopt any agreements through a stipulation.  If you cannot agree or if one parent is withholding the children from the other, a temporary orders hearing is necessary to determine whatever issues you and your spouse cannot agree on.  Temporary orders hearing are evidentiary hearings controlled by the Colorado Rules of Evidence and presided over by a magistrate or judge.  See C.R.C.P. 16.2(c)(3)(B).  Depending on the issues involved, at the hearing, each party will need to present evidence, usually through testimony, to the court regarding the best interests of the children and the income of the parties.  The court will then make a determination of what is in the best interests of the children and give temporary orders regarding parenting time, decision-making responsibility, child support, and/or maintenance.

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After temporary orders, the court will set a permanent orders hearing.  However, this hearing will usually be set at least ninety days or more after the temporary orders hearing so that the parties can conduct discovery.  Each party to a divorce must disclose certain financial documents, like three years tax returns, income documentation, real estate documentation, and others, to the other party.  See C.R.C.P. 16.2(e).  Additionally, the parties to a divorce can conduct formal discovery on the other party. Each party is allowed to propound interrogatories and requests for production and conduct depositions on the other party.  See C.R.C.P. 16.2(f).  After conducting discovery, each party should have information regarding income, assets, and character of the parties to present at a permanent orders hearing.  If the parties to a divorce can reach an agreement regarding division of property, parenting time, decision-making responsibility, child support, and/or maintenance, then a permanent orders hearing is not necessary, and the parties can submit a stipulated separation agreement and parenting plan to the court for approval.  However, if the parties do not come to an agreement, they will need to proceed to a permanent orders hearing and allow the court to determine the major issues in the case.  The permanent orders hearing is typically a day long evidentiary hearing, subject to the Colorado Rules of Evidence, where the parties will present all the evidence each party has about income, assets, and character of each party and why the court should award that party what they are requesting regarding division of property, parenting time, decision-making responsibility, child support, and/or maintenance.  The court will then issue final orders regarding division of property, parenting time, decision-making responsibility, child support, and/or maintenance.  These orders can only be amended by agreement of the parties, appeal, or filing a motion to modify the orders.

 

Throughout the divorce process, the court encourages parties to settle some or all of the issues involved.  See C.R.C.P. 16.2(c)(3)(C); 16.2(i).  Typically, and especially when children are involved, it is in the parties’ best interest to try to amicably resolve the legal issues involved with a divorce.  Not only does it cost less in attorney’s fees, but it also creates less conflict for the children involved.  However, in some cases one party cannot come to a reasonable agreement with the other on parenting time, child support, division of property, or maintenance.  Some parties’ goal is to take the children without any regard for the other party’s constitutional right to parent.  Some want an unreasonable amount of child support or maintenance without even looking at the guidelines. 

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At the Law Office of Michael Swink, while we encourage amicable divorces, we have handled numerous contested divorce as well.  In either case, call us today and speak with an experienced family law attorney.