--- title: "Colorado Eviction Process and Court Timeline | MCC Solutions" description: "Colorado eviction court steps: County Court, answer At the hearing, writ 10 days, sheriff. From official pages, with the earliest dates and links." url: "https://mcc-solutionsnj.com/tools/eviction-process-colorado" --- Eviction process · Colorado # Colorado eviction process and court timeline What happens after the landlord files: court, filing fee, hearing after filing, time to answer or appear, judgment to writ, who carries out the lockout, paying to stop the case, right to counsel (statewide) and diversion or mediation (statewide), from the state's own pages. **Short answer.** Cases go to the County Court. The Answer is due by the court date on the summons. Who carries out a lockout: sheriff. ## At a glance Court County Court. County court in the county where the rental is. "filed in County Court pursuant to this article 40" Source 4 Filing fee Depends on the amount claimed: $95 to $265 in the Jefferson County packet ($85 for county court claims under $1,000 in the clinic slides). Tenants pay no filing or service fee. "$95-$265 (varies by requested damages)" Source 4 Hearing after filing The clerk sets the return (court) date 7 to 14 days after filing. "The clerk will schedule a return date that should be between 7 and 14 days from the day you file" Source 2 Time to answer or appear The Answer is due by the court date on the summons. "The court date on the summons is a deadline for the tenant to file an Answer." Source 2 Judgment to writ The writ of restitution can't issue until at least 10 days after judgment. "until at least 10 days have passed since judgment was entered" Source 2 Who carries out the lockout Sheriff. After the writ, the landlord sets a removal date with the sheriff. "Once ordered, the Writ will allow the Sheriff to physically remove a tenant from the property." Source 1 Paying to stop the case The court's clinic slides list paying the landlord the rent owed before the judge orders possession as a defense. "Tenant able to pay the landlord rent owed before the judge orders possession for the landlord." Source 2 Right to counsel (statewide) No statewide right to counsel for tenants in eviction cases (as of November 2026, per the National Coalition for a Civil Right to Counsel): its tracker of enacted laws lists no statewide law here. Local: Boulder (2020) and Denver (2021) have their own right-to-counsel laws. "An eviction right to counsel is created by an enacted law that, at a minimum:" Source 5, National Coalition for a Civil Right to Counsel (secondary source) Diversion or mediation (statewide) Yes. Free mediation is available; it is mandatory through the state Office of Dispute Resolution for tenants who receive SSI, SSDI or TANF. "A tenant qualifies for mandatory mediation through ODR if they receive SSI, SSDI, or TANF." Source 2 ## Sample timeline: filed Monday, December 7, 2026 **Earliest under the statute; courts' calendars often take longer.** Need the other side served? [Process serving with an affidavit of service](/notary/process-serving). - **Answer or appear:** Monday, December 14, 2026 - **Hearing or trial:** Monday, December 14, 2026 - **Judgment:** Monday, December 14, 2026 - **Writ or warrant of possession:** Thursday, December 24, 2026 - **Earliest lockout:** no date (Not confirmed on an official page) Another date: [open the estimator](/tools/eviction-timeline-estimator?state=co). ## Want us to handle it? A runner files your papers in person at the clerk's window and sends you a scan of the stamped copy. We file what you prepared; we don't give legal advice. **Price:** Outside New Jersey it goes through our contractor network: quote-based, confirmed before any work starts, and booked once a local contractor accepts. In New Jersey it is from $75 per filing, court fees at cost. Starting rates. Your exact price is quoted after we confirm a local notary/runner, before you pay. [Request a court filing](/notary/court-filing#request) ## Help the official pages point to - The court's clinic slides list paying the landlord the rent owed before the judge orders possession as a defense. - Free mediation is available; it is mandatory through the state Office of Dispute Resolution for tenants who receive SSI, SSDI or TANF. - Court Resource Centers (Sherlocks) and the Housing Resources page (source 1) - Colorado Legal Services, free legal help for low-income tenants (source 3) **Not stated on the pages we read:** writ to lockout. ## Sources - [Colorado Judicial Branch: Residential Evictions](https://www.coloradojudicial.gov/self-help/residential-evictions) (checked November 2026) - [Colorado Judicial Branch: Understanding the Eviction Process (FED clinic slides, November 2024)](https://www.coloradojudicial.gov/sites/default/files/2024-11/FED%20Clinic%20PowerPoint%20-%20November%202024.pdf) (checked November 2026) - [Colorado Judicial Branch: JDF 186 Information for Eviction Cases (R10/21)](https://www.coloradojudicial.gov/sites/default/files/2023-07/JDF186.pdf) (checked November 2026) - [Colorado Judicial Branch: Jefferson County Eviction Packet (4.7.25)](https://www.coloradojudicial.gov/sites/default/files/2025-04/Jefferson%20County%20Eviction%20Packet%204.7.25.pdf) (checked November 2026) - [National Coalition for a Civil Right to Counsel (secondary source): National Coalition for a Civil Right to Counsel: Enacted Eviction Right to Counsel and Eviction Defense Programs (last modified November 2026)](https://civilrighttocounsel.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/RTC_Enacted_Legislation_in_Eviction_Proceedings_FINAL.pdf) (checked November 2026) Sourced from official pages; a few facts from vetted secondary sources, marked "(secondary source)". General information, not legal advice; we are not lawyers. Not a court form. Earliest under the statute; courts' calendars often take longer. ## Common questions **Which court hears eviction cases in Colorado?** County Court. County court in the county where the rental is. **How long does a tenant in Colorado have to respond?** The Answer is due by the court date on the summons. **How soon after filing is the Colorado hearing?** The clerk sets the return (court) date 7 to 14 days after filing. That's the statute's window; the court's own calendar decides the actual date. **When can a Colorado landlord get the writ after winning?** The writ of restitution can't issue until at least 10 days after judgment. **Who carries out an eviction in Colorado?** Sheriff. After the writ, the landlord sets a removal date with the sheriff. The officer acts on the court's order. **Can paying the rent stop a Colorado eviction case?** The court's clinic slides list paying the landlord the rent owed before the judge orders possession as a defense. **What does it cost to file in Colorado?** Depends on the amount claimed: $95 to $265 in the Jefferson County packet ($85 for county court claims under $1,000 in the clinic slides). Tenants pay no filing or service fee. Notice step: [notice periods](/tools/landlord-tenant-notice-periods-by-state) · Deposit step: [deposit rules](/tools/security-deposit-rules-by-state) · All states: [eviction process by state](/tools/eviction-process-timeline-by-state) · [California](/tools/eviction-process-california) · [Delaware](/tools/eviction-process-delaware) ## Keep rental records in order [Bookkeeping for landlords](/bookkeeping/for/small-landlords)[Call (908) 444-6373](tel:+19084446373)