A divorce, or dissolution, is the legal termination of a marriage. When a marriage is dissolved, important and often emotional issues must be resolved, such as; who will make decisions for the children, where the children will live, how often they will see each parent, if spousal support will be ordered, and how the property will be divided. The dissolution of marriage case follows a timeline imposed by the State. The case may be ended by an Agreement entered into by the parties, or by a hearing where the Court will resolve any disputed issues. The Court will require parties to mediate the disputed issues to see if they can be resolved prior to the final hearing. Colorado requires a waiting period of ninety days between the time the initial papers are served, and the time that the final decree may be entered.

If the parties have children, the Court must enter orders determining who makes decisions for them, where the children will live, and how often and how much the children will see the other parent. The criteria the Court considers is what is in the "best interest" of the children. The Court may appoint a Child and Family Investigator (CFI) who is an independent person who visits the home of both parents, interviews important people in the childrens' lives, and then submits a report to the Court to aid the judge in preparing Parenting-Time Orders.

Both parents are obligated to support their children. The amount of child support paid depends on the amount of time each parent has the children in their care, and the parent's income. In addition to the child support, the Court will normally order continuation of health insurance, and division of children's medical bills and child care expenses.

Depending on the circumstances, spousal support or alimony (now called maintenance) may be ordered for either the wife or the husband, depending on need. The purpose is to maintain, so much as possible, the standard of living that the parties enjoyed during the marriage. If the party who is receiving maintenance has not worked for some time, the maintenance may be used to allow that party to obtain sufficient training so that they may be employed. Other factors considered by the Court are the length of marrriage, financial obligations of the parties, children and child support, and the amount of assets and real property owned by the parties.