The Hearing Is in Two Weeks.
Be Ready.
A temporary protection order lasts days. A permanent one can last the rest of your life. The hearing that decides which one you end up with is usually set within 14 days, so preparation has to start immediately.
A Colorado protection order lawyer matters most in the short window between the temporary order and the permanent hearing. That is where evidence gets gathered, witnesses get lined up, and the record gets built. At Flatiron Legal Advisors, we represent petitioners seeking protection and respondents defending against an order.
If you are in immediate danger, call 911 first. Then call us.
Under C.R.S. § 13-14-104.5, county, district, probate, juvenile, and some municipal courts can issue civil protection orders. They are available to prevent threatened or actual physical harm, domestic abuse, stalking, sexual assault or abuse, and abuse or exploitation of an elderly or at-risk adult.
A judge can issue a temporary order the same day, based only on what the petitioner presents. The respondent is then served with the order and a citation. The return date is set no more than 14 days out. If service has not happened by then, the court extends the temporary order and resets the hearing.
At the hearing, both sides can testify and present evidence. Under C.R.S. § 13-14-106, the court makes the order permanent if it finds by a preponderance of the evidence that the respondent committed acts that are grounds for an order and will keep doing so unless restrained. The court does not have to find imminent danger to enter a permanent order.
If the respondent was properly served and does not show up, the court can enter a permanent order by default without hearing more evidence. Missing the hearing is not a strategy.
We help you:
A protection order is civil, but the consequences are not minor. It can remove you from your home, restrict contact with your children, appear on background checks, and affect your job.
We help you:
When a protection order is based on an act of domestic violence involving the threat, use, or attempted use of physical force, C.R.S. § 13-14-105.5 requires the restrained person to stop possessing or purchasing firearms and ammunition and to relinquish what they have, with proof filed with the court. Federal law under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(8) adds a separate nationwide prohibition.
Violating a protection order is a crime under C.R.S. § 18-6-803.5, charged as a class 2 misdemeanor and rising to a class 1 misdemeanor for a repeat violation. Officers are required to arrest when they have probable cause. Contact through a friend, a social media account, or a third party still counts.
These cases rarely stand alone. A protection order can reshape parenting time, force a move out of the family home, and change the tone of an entire divorce or custody case. Criminal cases carry their own mandatory protection orders that run alongside the civil one, and the terms are not always the same.
We look at the whole picture rather than treating the hearing as an isolated event, and we coordinate with our criminal defense team when a related charge is pending.
We move fast. Fourteen days is not long. We start on evidence and witnesses the day you call.
We handle both sides. Representing petitioners and respondents means we know how these hearings are actually argued and where each side tends to be weak.
We tell you the truth about your case. If the evidence is thin, you will hear that from us before you hear it from a judge.
Nikki Nicholaou is a family law attorney at Flatiron Legal Advisors who has practiced family law since earning her Juris Doctor from the University of Colorado School of Law in Boulder in 2021. She completed her undergraduate work at Florida State University and speaks Greek and Spanish.
Clients describe Nikki as a real person first. She understands that people who call a law firm are usually having a hard week, and she listens with attention and empathy rather than legal detachment. Her focus is on making sure clients understand the big picture of their case, hold realistic expectations, and can reach her when they need to.
Whether you are asking a court for protection or defending against a request, the permanent hearing is the moment that decides everything. Schedule a confidential consultation and we will get to work on it right away.
The return date is set no more than 14 days after the temporary order issues. If the respondent has not been served, the court extends the temporary order and resets the date.
Yes. Colorado protection orders are not limited to intimate partners. They are available against neighbors, coworkers, relatives, and strangers when the statutory grounds are met.
Report it. Save the messages and call law enforcement. Violating a protection order is a separate crime, and enforcement does not depend on you agreeing to the contact.
Yes, but not quickly. A restrained party generally cannot file a motion to modify or dismiss until two years after the permanent order was issued or after a prior motion was decided, and a recent fingerprint-based background check is required.
You are allowed to appear on your own. These hearings involve evidence rules, cross-examination, and consequences that are difficult to undo, so representation makes a real difference on both sides.
Protection orders are entered into a central registry and commonly appear in background screening. That is one of the main reasons respondents contest them rather than letting them enter by default.
