Important Documents to Give Your Florida Divorce Attorney

When you are facing divorce, the last thing you may be thinking about is organizing your financial documents. However, it is necessary to provide your divorce attorney with copies of all important financial documents, not only so that he or she can ensure that all of these matters are properly addressed in your divorce, but also to comply with mandatory disclosures of financial information under Florida law. You can save time and money by taking steps to gather and organize all financial documents relevant to your marriage before you meet with your Fort Lauderdale divorce lawyer, rather than leaving your lawyer with an unorganized mess. By providing your lawyer with these documents up front, you can get a head start on moving forward with your divorce proceedings.

Mandatory Disclosure Documents

Florida Family Law Rule of Procedure 12.285 outlines the information that spouses are required to exchange during a Florida divorce. This financial information also will help you complete the financial affidavit that must be filed with the divorce court. While you may initially be reluctant to disclose some of this information to your soon-to-be-ex-spouse, Florida law does not give you a choice. You must disclose all of required financial information to your spouse, who must do the same. These documents include the following:

– All federal and state income tax returns, gift tax returns, and intangible personal property tax returns that you have filed during the past year;
– If you have not yet filed your income tax returns, all W-2 forms, 1099 forms, and K- forms;
– Paycheck stubs or other evidence of your earnings for the past three months;
– All leases, deeds from the last three years, and promissory notes from the last 12 months;
– All checking account statements for the last three months and all other financial account statements for the last 12 months, including savings, money market, and certificate of deposit accounts, whether held separately or jointly with another person;
– The most recent statement for any 401(k), 403(b), IRA, SEP, KEOGH, or retirement account;
– The declarations page, most recent statement, and certificate for all life insurance policies;
– Current health and dental insurance cards for the parties and their children;
– Corporate, partnership, and trust tax returns filed for the last three tax years if a spouse has at least a 30 percent ownership or interest in the entity filing the return;
– All promissory notes for the last 12 months, credit card and charge account statements for the last three months, and evidence relating to any other debts;
– All court orders requiring the payment of spousal or child support; and
– All written prenuptial or postnuptial agreements entered into by the spouses.

While this is not an exhaustive list of all documents required to be disclosed under Florida law, it does give you a good starting point for gathering the necessary documents. Obtaining and organizing these documents before meeting with your divorce lawyer is not only useful, but mandatory.

Call Your Fort Lauderdale Divorce Lawyer Today

Getting your financial records together while in the midst of a divorce can be difficult. Let us help you determine which documents are important and relevant to your divorce proceedings. Contact Vanessa L. Prieto Law Offices, LLC in Fort Lauderdale today, and let us show you how we can devise a strategy to present your case in order to achieve your goals.