Colorado Laws & Regulations
Before the topic guides below, a short orientation: which courts hear which cases, how the state is divided into judicial districts, where the statutes are published, and when a newly passed law actually takes effect. Each guide then goes into the statutes for its own area.
Our office is in Greenwood Village, in Arapahoe County, so the local examples on this page come from the 18th Judicial District, whose courts sit at the Arapahoe County Justice Center in Centennial.
How Colorado’s Courts Are Organized
Five levels in the state system, plus city courts outside it
Trial courts sit in every county. County-court decisions are appealed to the district court, district-court decisions go to the Court of Appeals, and the Supreme Court is the court of last resort.
County courts
Trial courts in every county for civil claims up to a set dollar limit, misdemeanors, traffic infractions, protection orders, and small claims. Decisions are appealed to the district court.
District courts
The general-jurisdiction trial courts: felonies, civil claims of any amount, domestic relations, probate, mental health, and, in most counties, juvenile matters. Colorado is divided into 23 judicial districts.
Water courts
Seven specialized courts, one for each major river division, with exclusive jurisdiction over the determination and administration of water rights. District judges sit as water judges.
Colorado Court of Appeals
The intermediate appellate court. It reviews district-court decisions and most appeals from state agencies.
Colorado Supreme Court
The court of last resort for the state system.
Municipal courts
Created by individual home-rule cities and towns to hear violations of their own ordinances. They are not part of the state judicial branch. Greenwood Village, for example, runs its municipal court at 6060 S. Quebec Street.
Districts, Statutes and Effective Dates
23 judicial districts since 2025
Colorado’s district courts are grouped into 23 judicial districts. The newest, the 23rd, covers Douglas, Elbert, and Lincoln counties and was split off from the 18th effective January 7, 2025; the Judicial Branch marked its opening on January 14, 2025. It was the first new district in 62 years.
The 18th Judicial District now consists of Arapahoe County alone; anything describing a four-county 18th District is out of date. The Judicial Branch’s Office of Dispute Resolution keeps a mediator roster covering every one of the 23 districts.
Where the statutes are published
Colorado’s statutes are codified as the Colorado Revised Statutes (C.R.S.), maintained by the Revisor of Statutes in the Office of Legislative Legal Services under the General Assembly’s Committee on Legal Services.
The General Assembly publishes a free, continuously updated, unofficial version at leg.colorado.gov. When a page on this site cites a section such as C.R.S. § 42-4-1301, that is where to read the full text.
When a new law takes effect
The General Assembly meets every year. A bill with a safety clause, a finding under Colo. Const. art. V, § 1(3) that the act is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety, takes effect on the Governor’s signature or the date it names, and cannot be referred to the voters.
A bill without a safety clause cannot take effect before the 91st day after the session adjourns, because the Constitution gives citizens 90 days to file a referendum petition. If a valid petition is filed, the act is suspended until the next general election. A session adjourning on May 13, for example, would put such bills into effect on August 12.
Colorado Law Guides by Topic
Each guide cites the statute it rests on
Colorado Criminal Code
How Colorado classifies offenses under C.R.S. Title 18, from petty offenses and misdemeanors to felonies, and what each class carries.
Read the guideDUI/DWAI Laws
The 0.08 and 0.05 thresholds under C.R.S. § 42-4-1301, the 7-day deadline to request a DMV hearing, and the penalties that follow a conviction.
Read the guideFamily Law Statutes
Dissolution of marriage, parental responsibilities, and child and spousal support under Colorado law.
Read the guidePersonal Injury Laws
Negligence, fault, damages, and the deadlines for filing an injury claim in Colorado.
Read the guideReal Estate Law
Buying, selling, leasing, and owning property in Colorado, including disclosures and homeowners’ associations.
Read the guideBusiness Laws
LLC and corporation formation, periodic reports, non-compete rules, wage and final-pay rules, and contract deadlines.
Read the guideLegal Knowledge Base
Plain-language answers to the questions clients ask us most often, across every practice area.
Read the guideColorado Legal System FAQs
The questions behind the questions
Related Pages
This page is general information about Colorado law, not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. The facts here were checked on September 26, 2026.
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