When Colorado courts decide parenting time or decision-making responsibility, they apply the best interests of the child standard under C.R.S. § 14-10-124. The court considers statutory factors and other relevant facts, with the child’s safety and physical, mental, and emotional needs receiving paramount consideration.

The best-interests standard does not automatically favor a mother or father, guarantee a 50/50 schedule, or turn on one fact alone. Instead, the court evaluates the family’s circumstances as a whole. Understanding the factors can help parents organize relevant information and prepare for a contested parenting matter.

This article provides general information about how Colorado courts approach parenting time and decision-making responsibility. For advice about a specific case, speak with a qualified Colorado family law attorney.

What Does “Best Interests of the Child” Mean in Colorado?

The best interests of the child is the legal standard Colorado courts use when allocating parental responsibilities. Parental responsibilities include parenting time and decision-making responsibility.

Under C.R.S. § 14-10-124, courts consider the child’s safety, physical and mental health, emotional needs, relationships, adjustment, and each parent’s ability to meet the child’s needs. For decision-making responsibility, the court also considers whether the parents can cooperate and make decisions jointly.

The statute directs courts to consider relevant factors rather than apply a single formula. A judge may give different weight to different facts depending on the child’s age, needs, relationships, safety concerns, and the parents’ circumstances.

Factors Colorado Courts Consider in Parenting Cases

The Wishes of the Parents and the Child

Courts may consider each parent’s wishes about parenting time. They may also consider the child’s wishes if the child is sufficiently mature to express a reasoned and independent preference about the parenting-time schedule.

A child does not get to make the final decision simply by stating a preference. The court evaluates the child’s age, maturity, reasoning, and the circumstances surrounding the preference alongside the other best-interests factors.

The Child’s Relationships and Adjustment

Colorado courts consider the child’s interaction and relationship with each parent, siblings, and other people who may significantly affect the child’s best interests. The court may also consider the child’s adjustment to home, school, and community.

Stability can be relevant, but stability does not automatically mean keeping the same schedule or living arrangement. The court looks at how the proposed parenting plan serves the child’s needs in the specific circumstances of the case.

Physical and Mental Health

The physical and mental health of the child and the parents may be relevant to parenting time and decision-making responsibility. The focus is not simply on whether someone has a diagnosis or medical condition. The question is how a health issue may affect the child’s safety, care, relationships, or day-to-day needs.

A parent’s health condition should not be treated as automatically disqualifying. The court focuses on the evidence and the effect, if any, on the child’s best interests.

Each Parent’s Ability to Support the Child’s Relationship With the Other Parent

Courts may consider each parent’s ability and willingness to encourage the sharing of love, affection, and contact between the child and the other parent.

This does not require a parent to ignore legitimate safety concerns. Protective actions related to domestic violence, child abuse, or neglect should be addressed with appropriate evidence and legal guidance. Parents should avoid using the child to deliver messages, making unnecessary negative comments about the other parent, or withholding information without a lawful basis.

Past Involvement and Ability to Put the Child’s Needs First

The court may consider the parents’ past pattern of involvement, including their time commitment, mutual support, and participation in the child’s life. It may also consider each parent’s ability to place the child’s needs ahead of their own.

Useful evidence may include records of school involvement, medical appointments, transportation, daily caregiving, extracurricular activities, and communication with the other parent. A parent’s involvement should be presented accurately and in context rather than reduced to a list of isolated events.

Physical Proximity and Practical Parenting-Time Considerations

The physical proximity of the parents can affect whether a proposed schedule is practical. Travel time, school location, work schedules, transportation, and the child’s activities may all affect how a parenting plan works in daily life.

A proposed schedule that looks equal on paper may not be practical if it creates excessive travel, repeated school disruptions, or exchanges that cannot be completed reliably. Parents should be prepared to explain how a proposed schedule would work in practice.

Safety, Abuse, Neglect, and Domestic Violence

Safety is a central consideration in a Colorado parenting case. Courts may consider evidence of child abuse, neglect, domestic violence, or other conduct that affects the child or the relationship between a parent and child.

When safety concerns are present, the court may address parenting time, decision-making responsibility, exchanges, supervision, communication, or other protections. Parents should raise urgent safety concerns promptly and obtain legal advice rather than trying to resolve serious risks through informal schedule changes alone.

How Decision-Making Responsibility Is Determined

Decision-making responsibility concerns major choices affecting a child, such as education, medical care, and other important issues. Colorado courts may allocate decision-making responsibility jointly, individually to one parent, or in a combination that assigns different issues to different parents.

When deciding whether joint decision-making is appropriate, the court may consider:

• Whether the parents can cooperate and make decisions jointly
• The parents’ past pattern of involvement and mutual support
• Whether joint decision-making would promote a positive relationship between the child and both parents
• The child’s safety, needs, and circumstances
• Evidence of abuse, neglect, domestic violence, or other safety concerns

A disagreement between parents does not automatically mean that joint decision-making is impossible. However, persistent inability to communicate or serious safety concerns may be important to the court’s analysis.

What Is a Child and Family Investigator or PRE?

In some contested parenting cases, the court may appoint a Child and Family Investigator, commonly called a CFI, or a Parental Responsibilities Evaluator, commonly called a PRE. These professionals may gather information about the family and make recommendations related to parenting time or parental responsibilities.

The scope and process can vary. An evaluation may involve interviews, records, observations, or information from other relevant people, depending on the appointment and the issues before the court. Parents should follow the evaluator’s instructions, be truthful, organize relevant records, and avoid coaching a child or turning the evaluation into a campaign against the other parent.

A CFI or PRE recommendation is not the same as a court order. The judge remains responsible for making the legal decision, but the evaluation may be considered as part of the evidence in the case.

How to Document Your Case

Parents preparing for a best-interests determination should focus on clear, relevant, and organized information. Helpful records may include:

• School attendance, conferences, activities, and communications
• Medical appointments and involvement in health decisions
• Transportation and exchange records
• Calendars showing parenting time and schedule changes
• Messages about important child-related decisions
• Evidence of daily caregiving and participation in routines
• Records showing efforts to communicate or resolve disagreements
• Information about the child’s adjustment, needs, and activities

Keep records factual and organized. Avoid creating unnecessary documentation solely to criticize the other parent. A court is more likely to find a clear timeline useful than a large collection of repetitive or inflammatory messages.

A declaration or written statement may be one way to present relevant facts, but parents should understand what evidence is permitted and how it should be submitted in their specific case. A Colorado family law attorney can help determine how to organize and present documentation.

Common Misconceptions About Colorado’s Best-Interests Standard

There Is No Automatic 50/50 Schedule

Colorado law does not guarantee an equal parenting-time schedule in every case. Courts evaluate the child’s best interests and the practical circumstances of the family. A 50/50 schedule may work for some families, but it is not an automatic result.

Colorado Courts Do Not Automatically Favor Mothers or Fathers

Colorado law does not presume that a person is better able to serve a child’s best interests because of that person’s sex. The court evaluates the evidence and the statutory factors rather than applying a default preference for mothers or fathers.

A Modification Is Not the Same as an Initial Determination

A request to modify an existing parenting-time or decision-making order may involve additional legal requirements beyond the best-interests analysis. A parent should not assume that a new preference, ordinary disagreement, or minor inconvenience is enough to change a court order.

Changes in school, work schedules, relocation, health, safety, or a child’s needs may be relevant, but the applicable legal standard depends on the type of request and the circumstances. Obtain legal advice before changing a court-ordered schedule on your own.

One Strong Fact Usually Does Not Decide the Case

A parent may have an important fact in their favor, but courts generally consider the full picture. The strongest preparation connects the evidence to the child’s needs, safety, stability, relationships, and practical daily routine.

Preparing for a Best-Interests Determination

Understanding the factors gives parents a framework for preparing before a hearing. Start by reviewing the current parenting plan or court order and identifying the specific issue in dispute. Then gather relevant records, create a neutral timeline, and consider what parenting arrangement would work in the child’s actual daily life.

Parents should also be prepared to address difficult facts honestly. An attorney can help explain which facts are legally relevant, what evidence may be useful, and how to respond to allegations or safety concerns.

For more information about parenting plans and custody matters, visit the Tolison & Williams child custody resource.

Talk With a Denver Child Custody Attorney

A best-interests determination depends on the child’s needs, the parents’ circumstances, the available evidence, and the specific legal issue before the court. If you are facing a contested parenting matter, need help understanding a CFI or PRE evaluation, or are considering a change to an existing order, legal guidance can help you understand your options.

This article is for general informational purposes only and is not legal advice. It does not create an attorney-client relationship with Tolison & Williams. Colorado family law may change, and how it applies depends on the facts of each case. Contact Tolison & Williams to discuss your situation with a qualified Colorado family law attorney.