Sued by a debt buyer in Colorado
The extra rules for debt buyer suits, and how to use them in your answer.
Checked against official sources: Oct 24, 2026.
Short answer
A debt buyer is a company that bought an old debt and now sues to collect it. If a debt buyer's debt is sued on, the complaint must include a copy of the contract or other writing showing you agreed to the original debt (for a credit card, the last monthly statement showing a purchase, payment or balance transfer, if no signed contract exists), and every assignment showing an unbroken chain of ownership from the original creditor.
- Time limit to sue (written contract)
- 6 years
- Time to answer
- 21 days
What a debt buyer must show in Colorado
- If a debt buyer's debt is sued on, the complaint must include a copy of the contract or other writing showing you agreed to the original debt (for a credit card, the last monthly statement showing a purchase, payment or balance transfer, if no signed contract exists), and every assignment showing an unbroken chain of ownership from the original creditor.
- Before a default judgment, the plaintiff must file business-record evidence showing the original account number, original creditor, amount at charge-off, any added charges after charge-off, and the date of the last payment or transaction; an affidavit alone is not enough.
- For medical debt, the complaint must include an itemized bill.
- A collection agency that is not the creditor or debt buyer may sue only if the original creditor is named first in the case caption and the agency has a full assignment with settlement authority.
- The case must be filed in the judicial district where you live or where you signed the contract.
Law: C.R.S. § 5-16-111(1), (1.5), (2), (3), (4), (5), (6)
What can defeat the claim in Colorado
In the answer, you explain why you do not owe the amount claimed, or what you believe you owe (JDF 96). Defenses that come from Colorado law include: the 6-year time limit to sue on a debt has run; a debt buyer did not attach the original agreement and the full chain of ownership; and a collector filed in the wrong judicial district.
Law: C.R.S. § 13-80-103.5(1)(a); C.R.S. § 5-16-111(2); C.R.S. § 5-16-111(1)
Too old to sue on?
In Colorado, the time limit to sue on a written contract is 6 years. A debt older than that can be a defense, but you must raise it in your answer.
A debt collector must not sue you, or threaten to sue you, on a debt that is too old to sue on.
Law: 12 CFR 1006.26(b)
In nearby states
What to do in Colorado
Check who is suing
If the name on the summons is not a company you know, it may be a debt buyer.
Ask for the paperwork
Send a documents request letter to the plaintiff's lawyer.
File your answer
Deadline in Colorado: County Court: by the date and time on your summons (the return date).
Use the rules
Missing ownership papers and old debts are common defenses.
Get help
Legal aid can help for free: Colorado Legal Services (free legal aid) and Colorado Bar Association: Find a Lawyer.
Federal rules in every state
- Where a collector must sue. A debt collector that sues you over a consumer debt must file where you signed the contract or where you live when the suit starts. Law: 15 U.S.C. 1692i(a)(2)
- If the collector broke the law. You can sue a debt collector that broke the federal debt collection law within 1 year, for your losses, up to $1,000 more and your lawyer's fees. Law: 15 U.S.C. 1692k
Free help in Colorado
Questions about debt buyer suits in Colorado
What does Colorado require of debt buyers who sue?
If a debt buyer's debt is sued on, the complaint must include a copy of the contract or other writing showing you agreed to the original debt (for a credit card, the last monthly statement showing a purchase, payment or balance transfer, if no signed contract exists), and every assignment showing an unbroken chain of ownership from the original creditor. Before a default judgment, the plaintiff must file business-record evidence showing the original account number, original creditor, amount at charge-off, any added charges after charge-off, and the date of the last payment or transaction; an affidavit alone is not enough. For medical debt, the complaint must include an itemized bill. A collection agency that is not the creditor or debt buyer may sue only if the original creditor is named first in the case caption and the agency has a full assignment with settlement authority. The case must be filed in the judicial district where you live or where you signed the contract.
How many days do I get to answer in Colorado?
County Court: by the date and time on your summons (the return date). You can file your answer before that date, or go to court at that date and time and file it there. District Court: 21 days after you are served in Colorado, or 35 days if you were served outside Colorado.
What is the time limit to sue in Colorado?
In Colorado, the time limit to sue on a written contract is 6 years. A debt older than that can be a defense, but you must raise it in your answer.
Related Colorado pages
Sources
- Colorado Revised Statutes 2024, Title 13 (courts, fees, judgments, exemptions)
- Colorado Revised Statutes 2024, Title 5 (interest § 5-12-102; debt collection lawsuits § 5-16-111)
- County Court Civil Summons (C.R.C.P. Form 1)
- District Court Civil Summons (JDF 600)
- Answer Under Simplified Civil Procedure (Form 3)
- Instructions for Filing an Answer and/or Counterclaim in County Court (JDF 96)
- Motion and Order to Set Aside Default Judgment (JDF 78)
- Colorado Supreme Court, In re J.C.W., 2025SA120 (C.R.C.P. 60(b) 182-day limit)
- Motion to Waive Fees (JDF 205)
- Affidavit of Service (JDF 98)
- Writ of Continuing Garnishment (Form 26)
- Objection to Calculation of the Amount of Exempt Earnings (Form 28)
- Writ of Garnishment with Notice of Exemption and Pending Levy (Form 29)
- Claim of Exemption (Form 30)
- Motion for Revival of Judgment (JDF 113)
- H.B. 26-1426, enrolled act (Colorado General Assembly)
Last checked: Oct 24, 2026.