Divorce laws in Pasadena require that a divorce begin with mandatory disclosures from each spouse regarding their personal financial history. The disclosure process requires that each spouse produce a variety of financial documents.
The exact documents needed vary based on your income and assets, but typically include:
- Three months of recent pay stubs, if you work outside the home
- State and federal gift/intangible personal property tax returns from the last three years
- 1099, W-2 and K-1 forms from the past year
- Deeds, loan applications, and lease agreements
- Checking and savings account statements
- Credit card statements
- Retirement plan information
- Life insurance information
If you and your spouse have minor children together, you will also need to produce records of expenses relating to the needs of the children. This includes daycare costs and health insurance costs, as well as any expenses related to special needs that the child may have.
Information regarding the value of any special assets, such as collectibles, antiques, jewelry, or art, may be needed as well. This might require the services of a skilled appraiser.
If you are concerned about the cost of divorce, one easy way to keep your attorney fees in line is to simply gather this information yourself. However, since it's common for married couples to have one spouse handle most of the family finances, you might need to ask for help to get all of the documents you need.
Even if you and your spouse are not currently on good terms, it's well worth it to try to overlook your differences long enough to gather this information as quickly as possible. A divorce attorney can charge anywhere from $150 to $1,000 per hour. A certified divorce financial analyst can gather the documents, but he or she will likely charge between $150 and $400 per hour. Putting aside your differences long enough to work together on the mandatory disclosures can result in a significant savings.
How Can We Help?
Please call our office at (626) 683-8113 or email us at info@PasadenaLawOffice.com if you are in need of legal representation when filing for divorce. Our Pasadena matrimonial law firm has experience handling a wide variety of divorce-related concerns.