Chapter 2 - § 2.1 JURISDICTIONAL STRUCTURE OF COLORADO COURTS

• Jurisdiction: Colorado

§ 2.1 Jurisdictional Structure of Colorado Courts

Before filing suit, the lawyer must determine in which court the case should properly be filed. The court must have subject matter jurisdiction over the claim, and it must be the proper venue for the case to be brought. Basically, whether a court has subject matter jurisdiction over a claim depends on whether it has the power to hear that type of claim. The court must also be the proper venue for the case—in other words, the location of the court must be the correct place to bring the action.

Colorado's non-appellate courts include state district courts, county courts, small claims courts, and municipal courts. Each of these is further described in the following paragraphs.

State district courts are courts of general jurisdiction and can hear all civil actions.¹ State district courts have exclusive jurisdiction of certain kinds of actions. In other words, those courts are the only courts in which those kinds of cases can be brought. District courts have original jurisdiction over civil actions involving any amount in controversy, domestic relations cases, cases involving the custody and support of children, paternity, juvenile actions, cases involving the dependency and neglect of children, probate and mental health cases, matters affecting the boundaries or title to real property, and appeals from judgments by county courts.²

County courts have concurrent jurisdiction with the state district courts of civil cases where the amount in controversy does not exceed $15,000, as well as the issuance of restraining orders in domestic violence and abuse cases.³ Colorado law also specifically extends and limits the civil jurisdiction of county courts regarding certain types of cases.⁴

Small claims courts are a division of the county courts. Small claims courts have concurrent jurisdiction with the county court for most, but not all, cases where the amount in controversy does not exceed $7,500.⁵

Because Denver is both a city and a county, its court system is different than that of the other counties' court systems. The Denver County Court functions as both a...