By Attorney Charles E. Liken Jr., Colorado court-appointed Child and Family Investigator. Answered straight: how parenting time and decision-making actually get decided — and how to put your kids (and your case) in the strongest position.
Charles E. Liken Jr., Esq. — On the Legal Front Lines · Former Government Investigator, Denver Human Services · Licensed Colorado Attorney · 20+ Years in Private Practice · Former Colorado Deputy District Attorney · Colorado Court-Appointed Child and Family Investigator
What decides custody in Colorado
Colorado doesn't award “custody” anymore — it allocates parental responsibilities: parenting time (the schedule) and decision-making (education, health, and more). Here's what actually moves the needle.
1
It's “best interests,” not winners and losers
Judges work through the best-interests factors in §14-10-124, C.R.S. — each parent's relationship with the child, ability to put the child's needs first, history of caregiving, the child's adjustment to home and school, and each parent's willingness to foster the child's relationship with the other parent.
Where The Longmont Law Firm comes in: We build your case factor by factor — with the documentation judges actually credit, not character speeches.
2
Is 50/50 automatic? No — but it's common
There's no legal presumption of equal time in Colorado, but courts strongly favor frequent, continuing contact with both fit parents, and near-equal schedules are routine when logistics support them.
Where The Longmont Law Firm comes in: We design schedules that fit real life — work shifts, school zones, distance — so your proposal reads as the practical one.
3
The parenting plan is the whole ballgame
Exchanges, holidays, vacation, phone/video contact, decision-making, dispute resolution — a vague plan is a future lawsuit. The court adopts a plan (JDF 1113) either by your agreement or its own order.
Where The Longmont Law Firm comes in: We draft plans tight enough to prevent the fights — clear exchanges, decision rules, and dispute-resolution steps built in.
4
When the experts get involved: Child and Family Investigators & PREs
In contested cases the court may appoint a Child and Family Investigator or Parental Responsibilities Evaluator (PRE) to investigate and recommend. Their reports carry heavy weight.
Where The Longmont Law Firm comes in: Attorney Liken is a trained Child and Family Investigator himself — he knows exactly what Child and Family Investigators look for, because he's done the looking.
5
Violations & emergencies
Withheld parenting time has a fast remedy (a verified JDF 1418motion, make-up time, fees) — and true endangerment supports emergency restriction motions.
Where The Longmont Law Firm comes in: We move quickly on both sides of these: enforcing your time, or defending against restriction motions built on spin.
Ready when you are — talk it through with Attorney Liken.
Start here: a no-charge 20-minute phone call directly with Attorney Liken.
Written & reviewed by Charles E. Liken Jr., Esq.Colorado Attorney · Former Deputy District Attorney · 700+ investigations · Reviewed for accuracy as of July 2026
Quick answers
Is Colorado a 50/50 custody state?
No presumption of 50/50 exists in Colorado law, but courts favor frequent and continuing contact with both parents, and equal or near-equal schedules are commonly ordered when practical.
At what age can a child choose which parent to live with?
There is no magic age in Colorado. The child's wishes are one best-interests factor, weighted by the child's maturity — they never control the outcome by themselves.
Can I limit the other parent's time?
Restricting parenting time requires showing the child is endangered physically or emotionally — a high bar. Disliking the other parent's rules or new partner is not enough.
Do unmarried parents go through the same process?
Yes. Allocation of parental responsibilities uses the same best-interests standard; parentage is simply established first if it's not already legally established.
How It Plays Out
What judges actually weigh (and what they ignore)
Judges care about patterns, not moments: who takes the kids to the dentist, who the school calls, who keeps the other parent informed. They discount one-off incidents, and they notice — negatively — a parent who bad-mouths the other or plays gatekeeper.
The status quo matters. The schedule that exists while your case is pending has a way of becoming permanent, so the worst move is walking out impulsively and “letting things settle later.” Get advice before you change the living arrangement, not after.
Step by step
1 · File (or respond) — Petition for APR (JDF 1031) for unmarried parents, or within a divorce; temporary orders can set an interim schedule fast.
2 · Disclose & propose — Financial disclosures, a proposed parenting plan, and — where contested — a Child and Family Investigator or PRE appointment.
3 · Mediate — Mediation is effectively mandatory in most Colorado districts before a contested hearing — and it's where most plans get made.
4 · Permanent orders — If agreement fails, the court hears evidence on the §14-10-124 factors and enters the plan itself.
Custody between never-married parents runs through the same APR process and the same best-interests factors — parentage (paternity) just gets established first. Our forms library has the complete APR packet.
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