In any divorce litigation, documents are considered very important and we can use them to establish fault grounds. They may contain factors needed to make sure we get our fair share of marital assets and income. With lack of proper document, we may not be able to prove our case and we will end up only getting fair share of marital debts. The success of divorce litigation could depend on how much we cooperate with our lawyer and the amount of information we provide.
Documents we provide to our lawyers could be standard, but we could also offer additional documents to support our case. In general, the more organized we are, the better our case will be. Many basic documents are required during early stages of the litigation, but obtaining all of them could take some time.
1. Income:
It is important for us to establish an accurate description of our financial situation. We should be able to gather proofs on income tax returns and other regular income in our possession. This should cover the period before and during our marriage, as well as at point of separation. There must be supporting documents that can reflect current income information, such as payroll stubs and other evidences.
We should also provide evidences of salaries, commissions, bonuses, raises, promotions and other benefits.
2. Assets:
It is generally important to identify our marital assets, so we will know how each spouse has contributed to them. It is important to provide our lawyers with copies of options or sales agreement related to property ownerships and others. We should gather certificates, if there are mutual funds, bonds and stocks. It is important to gather enough documents related to stock options, such as options provided by employers.
If there are deferred compensation plans, retirement plans, 401(k) plans, profit sharing plans and pensions, it is important to gather all of them. We need to request packets, if the plan administrator offers them for divorcing parties.
3. Many of us operated specific kind of business during our marriage and we should provide lawyers with ledgers or business records in our possessions. We should know whether control of these business assets is personal or not. This can be proven by journals and other documents. Other evidences include joint venture agreement and partnership that are signed during the marriage.
4. Personal property:
Other personal property returns, we may also gather all invoices, insurance policies, contracts and appraisals related to properties, which include antiques, expensive equipments, furnishings, fixture, furniture and other kind of ownerships. We shouldn’t also forget including firearm registration issued by the government. It is a good idea to include titles of cars and other motor vehicles, as well as financing agreements.
Lawyers will request information on our investment plans and bank accounts. So, we should provide them with bank charge notices, check registers, cancelled checks, deposit slips, passbooks and monthly bank statements.
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