INSIGHT
Colorado law determines who may bring a wrongful death claim. The right does not automatically belong to every family member, everyone named in a will, whoever opens the estate, or the person who was emotionally closest to the deceased.
The answer can depend on whether the deceased was married, whether the deceased left lineal descendants, whether a statutory designated beneficiary exists, whether a parent survives, whether the claim is brought during the first or second year after death, and whether another eligible claimant has already settled or filed the wrongful death action.
Because Colorado generally permits only one civil wrongful death action arising from one death, the statutory claimants should be identified before any person signs a release or attempts to settle the claim.
Wrongful death standing comes from statute
A wrongful death action is created by Colorado statute and belongs to the people the statute authorizes to sue.
Emotional closeness alone does not establish legal standing. A longtime unmarried partner, sibling, stepparent, close friend, or beneficiary under a will may have suffered a profound loss without independently qualifying to bring the statutory wrongful death claim.
That does not diminish the relationship. It reflects the structure chosen by the Colorado General Assembly.
The principal standing provisions appear in C.R.S. § 13-21-201.
Who may file during the first year?
During the first year after death, the surviving spouse generally has the primary right to bring the wrongful death action. C.R.S. § 13-21-201(1)(a)(I).
The spouse may make a written election allowing the spouse and the deceased’s heir or heirs to proceed together, or allowing the heirs to bring the action. C.R.S. § 13-21-201(1)(a)(II)–(III).
When there is no surviving spouse, the action may generally be brought by the heir or heirs or by a qualifying designated beneficiary with the statutory right to bring the claim. C.R.S. § 13-21-201(1)(a)(IV).
Sibling standing may exist in the first year, but only under the narrow circumstances stated in C.R.S. § 13-21-201(1)(a)(V).
A verbal family understanding does not necessarily substitute for the spouse’s written election where the statute requires one.
Who may file during the second year?
During the second year, the statutory filing rights broaden.
The action may generally be brought by the surviving spouse, the heir or heirs, the spouse and heirs together, a qualifying designated beneficiary together with the heirs, or certain siblings under narrow circumstances. C.R.S. § 13-21-201(1)(b)(I).
When the heirs commence a qualifying second-year action, the surviving spouse or qualifying designated beneficiary may seek to join. The statute requires a motion within 90 days after service of written notice of the action. C.R.S. § 13-21-201(1)(b)(II).
Those notice and joinder provisions should be addressed deliberately rather than discovered after the case is underway.
The broader second-year structure is not a reason to postpone the investigation. Evidence, insurance rights, and governmental notice periods may be lost long before the second year arrives.
What does “heirs” mean in the wrongful death statute?
The word “heir” often refers to a person who inherits through probate. Colorado wrongful death law uses the term more narrowly.
Colorado courts generally interpret “heirs” under C.R.S. § 13-21-201 as the deceased person’s lineal descendants. That ordinarily means children and further descendants rather than every person who might inherit under a will or intestacy statute.
See McGill v. General Motors Corp., 174 Colo. 388, 484 P.2d 790 (1971), and Ferguson v. Spalding Rehabilitation, LLC, 2019 COA 93.
An adopted descendant may qualify as a lineal descendant under the wrongful death statute. Ferguson, 2019 COA 93.
Parents are addressed through a separate statutory provision rather than being treated as “heirs” merely because they might inherit through probate.
When may parents bring the claim?
C.R.S. § 13-21-201(1)(c) provides standing to the father or mother when the deceased was an unmarried minor without descendants or an unmarried adult without descendants and without a qualifying designated beneficiary.
When both parents qualify, the statute generally gives them equal interests in the judgment, subject to procedures that may permit a different allocation in specified circumstances.
The parent of a married adult does not automatically obtain wrongful death standing merely because the parent maintained a close relationship with the deceased or may inherit from the estate.
Standing is evaluated under the wrongful death statute as of the relevant circumstances at death.
Can a sibling bring the claim?
Colorado now permits sibling standing in narrow situations.
A sibling or the heirs of a deceased sibling may qualify when, at the time of death, the deceased left no surviving spouse, no statutory heirs, and no qualifying designated beneficiary. Siblings may also qualify in specified circumstances involving an unmarried person without descendants and no surviving parent.
The governing provisions are C.R.S. § 13-21-201(1)(a)(V) for the first year and § 13-21-201(1)(b)(I)(E) for the second year.
A sibling should not assume that the absence of a spouse is enough. A child, further lineal descendant, designated beneficiary, or qualifying parent may have a superior statutory position.
What is a designated beneficiary?
Colorado permits an adult to execute a statutory designated-beneficiary agreement under article 22 of title 15 and to grant specified legal rights to another person.
A designated beneficiary may have wrongful death standing when the agreement grants the applicable statutory right and C.R.S. § 13-21-201 recognizes the beneficiary in the circumstances presented.
That is not the same as naming someone in a will, designating a life-insurance beneficiary, creating a payable-on-death account, or granting medical power of attorney.
The actual designated-beneficiary agreement and rights granted must be reviewed.
Colorado generally permits one wrongful death action
C.R.S. § 13-21-203(1) provides that there may be only one civil action under the wrongful death statutes for the death of one decedent.
That rule makes coordination essential. A prelitigation settlement by a person holding the statutory right can preclude another claimant from bringing a later wrongful death action. See Barnhart v. American Furniture Warehouse Co., 2013 COA 158.
Before one family member settles, the parties should identify the statutory claimants, determine who currently holds the filing right, provide required notices, understand disagreements, review the release, and determine how the proceeds will be allocated.
An insurer should not be allowed to create avoidable family conflict by obtaining a sweeping release before the standing issues are understood.
Wrongful death and survival claims are different
A wrongful death claim generally seeks compensation for losses sustained by the authorized statutory claimants because of the death.
A survival claim preserves certain claims that belonged to the deceased before death. It is generally brought or continued by the personal representative of the estate.
C.R.S. § 13-20-101 provides that most causes of action survive death, but it limits the damages available in a tort personal-injury survival action. It also expressly states that a survival action does not preclude a wrongful death action.
The distinction can affect who controls the claim, who receives the proceeds, what damages are available, whether probate administration is necessary, how liens and creditor claims operate, and how a settlement agreement should be written.
Opening an estate does not automatically give the personal representative ownership of the family’s wrongful death claim.
Filing deadlines and governmental notice still matter
Colorado wrongful death claims are generally subject to a two-year filing period under C.R.S. § 13-80-102(1)(d). The claim ordinarily accrues on the date of death under C.R.S. § 13-80-108(2).
Special exceptions may apply, including a longer period for certain deaths involving vehicular homicide and leaving the scene.
A claim involving a public entity or employee may also require written notice within 182 days under C.R.S. § 24-10-109.
The first-year and second-year standing rules operate inside those other deadlines. They should not be mistaken for independent extensions of time.
See Colorado Personal Injury Statute of Limitations: Deadlines by Claim Type.
Evidence of the relationship and loss
The legal relationship establishes potential standing. The lived relationship helps establish the actual loss.
Relevant evidence may include photographs, communications, shared activities, financial support, household services, parenting responsibilities, caregiving, employment records, benefits, tax documents, travel, traditions, and testimony from people who knew the family.
The objective is not to manufacture sentiment. It is to present an accurate picture of the relationship and what the death changed.
Identify the proper claimants before negotiating
A fatal injury creates grief, financial uncertainty, and sometimes disagreement over who has authority to act. The statutory structure should be clarified before an insurer obtains a release or one family member unintentionally affects everyone else’s rights.
Rex Legal represents Colorado families in wrongful death claims arising from crashes, dangerous property conditions, defective products, and other negligent conduct.
Tell Us What Happened.
Michael Rex can review what happened and what should occur next. Available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
This article is general information about Colorado law, not legal advice, and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Every case turns on its own facts.