office of respondent parents’ counsel
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Appeals court finds opening in Colorado Supreme Court’s framework for child neglect cases
Colorado’s second-highest court squeezed through an opening last week in a controversial state Supreme Court decision from 2025, concluding that the justices had not prohibited a child’s legal representative from being the one to request termination of parental rights in child welfare cases. Whether the government alone is empowered to pursue child neglect cases became…
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Colorado legislature overrules 2 state Supreme Court decisions about child neglect, visitation
Colorado lawmakers have overruled a recent pair of state Supreme Court decisions, adopting the dissenting justices’ points of view in cases involving grandparent visitation rights and the ability of children to oppose a county’s decision to withdraw a neglect case. The recently enacted legislation addressed two split decisions that the Supreme Court released within days…
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Colorado Supreme Court suspends rules for ‘Indian child’ welfare cases
The Colorado Supreme Court suspended its rules last week that govern how judges handle custody cases when an “Indian child” is involved. The court’s move came after the legislature enacted extensive changes this year, partially in response to Supreme Court decisions that afforded a lower degree of protection to children and families with tribal, or…
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Colorado Supreme Court rules government alone may pursue child neglect allegations
The government, and only the government, may pursue child neglect cases, the Colorado Supreme Court ruled on Monday, rejecting the argument that children or parents may continue litigating allegations of neglect after the government moves to dismiss. In a 6-1 decision, the Supreme Court relied on the longstanding concept of “parens patriae,” which empowers the…
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Colorado Supreme Court approves new rules for child welfare cases, with tweaks to jury trial right
The Colorado Supreme Court adopted on Monday a package of revisions to the rules governing child welfare cases, while modifying one section that governs when a parent surrenders their right to have a jury decide if their child is neglected. Earlier this month, the justices held a hearing to evaluate the long-running group effort to…
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Colorado Supreme Court says no tribal contact required for potential ‘Indian child’ cases
While recognizing that tribal nations alone are responsible for deciding who qualifies as a member, the Colorado Supreme Court ruled on Monday that counties are not required to contact tribes to verify whether certain children in custody proceedings are actually American Indian. Under the Indian Child Welfare Act of 1978, child welfare cases trigger protections…