Upon the death of a person with assets, the Colorado courts could require a probate hearing. Interested parties must follow specific procedures to satisfy legal requirements.
One potential step involves the scheduling of a hearing before the probate court system.
Contact the applicable court
According to information from the Colorado Judicial Branch, interested parties should take the steps to schedule a probate hearing. This includes filing a JDF 709 form with the courts, waiting for seven to 10 days and then contacting the office to set up the hearing.
The involved parties should estimate the time the hearing will take, based on all relevant matters. In some cases, the courts will predetermine the time length of the hearing.
The petitioning party must also fill out the Certificate of Service section of the form. This provides information on the means for contacting all other interested parties in the case. The petitioning party must send the Certificate of Service to the other parties and file this form with the courts.
Complete a Notice of Hearing form
Once the probate court sets up a hearing date, the petitioning party must still contact other potentially interested parties with the date of the hearing as well as a copy of the pleading. These steps give other interested parties the ability to attend the hearing and prepare for it. In cases where contact with other parties fails, the courts could require publication of the Notice of Hearing date in the public record.
Not all situations contain probate court requirements. In some cases, such as with smaller estates, heirs do not need to enter into a probate hearing.