Statutes are laws passed by state legislatures (state laws) and by the United States Congress (federal laws). Statutes are one of the primary sources of law in the United States (sometimes referred to as statutory law) and cover a wide variety of legal topics. Courts often rely on statutes to resolve legal disputes (lawsuits) by applying the relevant statutes to the particular set of factual circumstances underlying the dispute.

Courts generally seek the clear and plain meaning of a statute, and if the court finds a statute ambiguous or “ambiguous on its face” (looking only at the words as written) the court may attempt to determine what the legislature intended in enacting the statute—known as legislative intent.

Related statutes are sometimes compiled in groups and referred to as codes—such as the penal code, the family code, or the code of civil procedure. Statutes may be amended (changed) or repealed (eliminated) by the legislature or Congress or declared unconstitutional (and thus unenforceable) by a court.

In Colorado, as in other states, statutes are laws enacted by the state legislature and by the United States Congress. These statutes encompass a broad range of legal areas and serve as a fundamental source of law, often referred to as statutory law. When resolving legal disputes, Colorado courts interpret these statutes by seeking their clear and plain meaning. If a statute is found to be ambiguous, courts may look into legislative intent to ascertain what the legislature aimed to achieve when the statute was passed. Colorado has organized related statutes into codes, such as the Colorado Revised Statutes, which include various titles like the penal code, family code, and civil code. These codes are subject to amendments or repeals by the state legislature and can also be reviewed by the judiciary for constitutionality. If a court deems a statute unconstitutional, it becomes unenforceable. The process of statutory interpretation and the application of codes are integral to the functioning of the legal system in Colorado.