Colorado Supreme Court Clarifies When a Parenting Time Change Is a “Modification” Versus a “Restriction”

In re Marriage of Dale, 2026 CO 35 (May 26, 2026)

The Colorado Supreme Court recently issued a significant family law decision that provides much-needed guidance for parents, attorneys, and judges handling parenting-time disputes. In In re Marriage of Dale, the Court addressed a question that has generated uncertainty for years: When does a reduction in parenting time become a legal “restriction” requiring a heightened standard of proof? 

The Law Office of Joel M Pratt is proud to have co-counseled with the Petitioner, who won this matter.

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The Background

After their divorce, the parents agreed to a parenting schedule that gave Father approximately 160 overnights per year and Mother 205 overnights, making Mother the primary residential parent. Less than two years later, Father changed jobs and began working more than 100 miles from the child’s residence several days each week. He requested a modification of the parenting schedule to accommodate his new work obligations.

The district court agreed that a change was necessary but adopted a different parenting schedule than the one Father proposed. The new schedule reduced Father’s parenting time by approximately 45 overnights per year—about a 28% reduction. Importantly, the court did not require supervised visits, prohibit overnight parenting time, or otherwise place conditions on Father’s time with the child.

Father appealed, arguing that such a substantial reduction in his parenting time should be treated as a restriction rather than a simple modification, which would require the court to find that parenting time endangered the child’s physical health or significantly impaired the child’s emotional development.

The Legal Issue

Colorado law applies two different standards when changing parenting time:

• A court may modify parenting time if the change is in the child’s best interests.

• A court may restrict parenting time only if parenting time would endanger the child’s physical health or significantly impair the child’s emotional development.

The key question before the Supreme Court was whether a significant reduction in the amount of parenting time automatically becomes a “restriction.”

The Supreme Court’s Holding

The Court answered that question with a clear no.

According to the majority opinion, a reduction in parenting time—even a substantial one—remains a modification unless:

1. The parent’s parenting time is completely eliminated; or

2. The court imposes meaningful qualitative constraints on how parenting time is exercised.

The Court explained that a restriction involves either:

• Reducing parenting time to zero, or

• Imposing conditions that limit the manner, location, or environment of parenting time, such as:

  • Supervised parenting time;

  • Prohibitions on overnight visits; or

  • Restrictions on where parenting time may occur.

Because Father still received substantial parenting time and no qualitative restrictions were imposed, the Court held that the district court had merely modified parenting time and properly applied the best-interests standard.

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Why This Decision Matters

This decision provides an important bright-line rule for Colorado family law cases.

Before Dale, some practitioners relied on language from an earlier Court of Appeals case suggesting that a sufficiently large reduction in parenting time could be considered a restriction. The Supreme Court expressly rejected that approach and overruled prior decisions to the extent they were inconsistent with its new rule.

As a result:

• Large reductions in parenting time may still be ordered under the child’s best-interests standard.

• Courts do not need to conduct an endangerment analysis simply because the reduction is substantial.

• The heightened endangerment standard is reserved for situations involving elimination of parenting time or significant limitations on how parenting time occurs.

  
  

Takeaway for Parents

The Colorado Supreme Court has now made clear that reducing parenting time is not the same as restricting parenting time. Unless a court eliminates parenting time altogether or imposes significant limitations such as supervision requirements or location restrictions, the change will generally be evaluated under the child’s best-interests standard.

For parents involved in parenting-time disputes, Dale will likely become one of the most important Colorado cases defining how courts analyze requests to alter parenting schedules and when the heightened endangerment standard applies.

This article is intended for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. If you have questions regarding parenting time or allocation of parental responsibilities in Colorado, consult with an experienced family law attorney.