Colorado public court records are open by default, and you can reach most of them in two ways: an online search through one of three vendors authorized by the Colorado Judicial Branch, or a direct request to the clerk of the court where the case was filed. Civil, criminal, domestic relations, probate, and water court files are generally available, though a specific list of case types — juvenile, mental health, adoption, guardianship, and a few others — stays closed to the public.
Searching Court Records Online
The Colorado Judicial Branch does not run its own public search site. It authorizes three private vendors to provide online access to court records: Background Information Services, LexisNexis (Colorado Courts Record Search), and Tessera Data.1Colorado Judicial Branch. Access Guide to Public Records Each sets its own fees for searches and document downloads. Links to all three sit on the Judicial Branch’s Access Guide to Public Records page.
What you bring to the search matters more than which vendor you pick. A case number lands you on the right file immediately. Without one, you need the parties’ full legal names, the county or judicial district where the case was filed, and an approximate year. Common names return long result lists, and every click costs money, so narrowing by date and location pays for itself.
Requesting Records from the Courthouse
You can also go directly to the clerk of court. Requests can be submitted in person, by mail, or through the Colorado Judicial Branch’s online record request form, which asks for the case number, party names, court location, and a description of the documents you want.2Colorado Judicial Branch. Record/Document Request Form For mail requests, include a self-addressed stamped envelope.
How Long It Takes
Under the Colorado Open Records Act, the custodian must provide the records within three working days. If the file is large, stored off-site, or needs screening for restricted content, the custodian can extend that deadline by up to seven additional working days, but has to notify you of the extension within the original three-day window.2Colorado Judicial Branch. Record/Document Request Form
What It Costs
Copy fees are set by statute. Single-sided copies cost $0.25 per page and double-sided copies cost $0.50. If you are a party to the case, your copy charges are capped at $15.00. Certified copies carry an additional $20.00 fee per document.3Colorado Judicial Branch. List of Fees Research and retrieval time can be billed separately, but CORA caps that hourly rate at $41.37 as of July 2024.4Colorado General Assembly. Colorado Open Records Act Maximum Hourly Research and Retrieval Fee
When a court can deliver documents electronically, there is often no charge. Walking into the courthouse and paying at the counter is usually the fastest route and avoids the retrieval fees that come with pulling older files out of storage.
What You Can Expect to Find
In a typical civil or criminal case file, the docket sheet, filed motions, court orders, judgments, and sentencing records are all accessible. Domestic relations files (divorce, legal separation, custody), probate matters, and water court disputes are generally open as well. Individual documents inside a file — a settlement agreement, an expert report, a financial affidavit — can be restricted by protective order, but the docket and final orders almost always remain public.
Criminal cases follow a slightly different rule. The Colorado Criminal Justice Records Act requires that records of “official actions” be open: the fact of an arrest, the charges filed, how the case was resolved, and any sentencing or probation decision.5Colorado Attorney General. Colorado Open Records Act and Colorado Criminal Justice Records Act Investigative files and internal law enforcement records fall outside that mandatory-disclosure category, and the custodian decides whether to release them.
Case Types Closed to the Public
Chief Justice Directive 05-01 lists specific case types that are excluded from public access entirely. No vendor search or clerk’s office will produce these files unless you fall within a narrow authorized group or hold a court order.6Colorado Judicial Department. Chief Justice Directive 05-01 – Concerning Access to Court Records
- Juvenile delinquency records. A specific list of people can view them without a court order — the juvenile, parents or guardians, attorneys of record, law enforcement, the probation department, and certain state agencies — but the general public cannot.7FindLaw. Colorado Revised Statutes Title 19 – 19-1-304
- Mental health evaluations and commitments.
- Adoption, dependency and neglect, and paternity cases.
- Guardianship and conservatorship (probate protected proceedings), including adult and minor matters.
- Truancy cases.
Criminal cases with a sexual assault charge get special handling. Before victim-identifying information has been redacted, the file is accessible only to judges, court staff, criminal justice agencies, the victim or their representative, and the parties. Everyone else needs a court order.6Colorado Judicial Department. Chief Justice Directive 05-01 – Concerning Access to Court Records The case shows up on the docket, but the victim’s name and identifying details are stripped from the public version.
Sealed Records
If a criminal record has been sealed, agencies responding to a public inquiry must say no public record exists for that person. The record is not destroyed — law enforcement, courts, and prosecutors can still see it for investigations and future cases — but it disappears from public search results and cannot be used against someone by employers, landlords, or licensing agencies.8FindLaw. Colorado Revised Statutes 24-72-703 – Sealing of Records – General Provisions
Non-conviction records — acquittals, dismissals, completed diversion — can be sealed at no filing cost. Conviction records have waiting periods tied to offense severity (one year after disposition for petty offenses, longer for misdemeanors and felonies), and the filing fee for a conviction-sealing petition is $224.3Colorado Judicial Branch. List of Fees Some offenses, including unlawful sexual behavior and certain domestic violence charges, cannot be sealed at all.9Colorado Judicial Branch. Sealing Criminal Records
Colorado’s Clean Slate Act (SB22-99) created an automated process for sealing certain low-level convictions starting in July 2024. A follow-up bill, HB24-1133, extended automatic sealing to certain non-conviction records beginning in July 2025. Eligible records seal without any petition or fee. The rollout has been gradual, so checking your own record periodically is worth doing.
If Your Request Is Denied
Ask the custodian for a written explanation first. That explanation matters if the dispute escalates.
Under CORA, your next step is to send the custodian written notice that you intend to file an application with the district court. You then wait at least fourteen days before filing. During that window, the custodian must meet with you or speak by phone to try to resolve the dispute. If you need faster access and can explain why, an expedited track lets you file after three business days of notice, with no meeting required.10FindLaw. Colorado Revised Statutes 24-72-204
If the custodian still refuses, you file a petition in the district court where the records are located. The court orders the custodian to show cause for withholding, and the hearing is set as quickly as practical. If the court rules the denial was improper, it orders the records disclosed and awards you court costs and reasonable attorney fees.10FindLaw. Colorado Revised Statutes 24-72-204 That fee-shifting provision is what gives the statute real force. You can represent yourself, though the hearing’s complexity often makes an attorney worth the money.