As a Divorce Attorney in Grapevine TX, We Can Help You With Financial Disclosures
When getting divorced, a good divorce attorney in Grapevine TX, will tell you how important it is to complete your financial disclosures correctly. Failing to do so can cost you in court. Here’s why – your spouse will have their own form completed, and it could be finished with certain objectives in mind. This is the form that a judge will reference to make a determination of assets and debts and how they are divided. If you don’t complete your form correctly or thoroughly, your spouse’s version could be used to your detriment.
A perfect example of this is when determining the value of your home. Say that your spouse is living in the home and will be keeping it as part of the divorce. If they use the tax assessed value of the home and you don’t provide contrary evidence, the judge will likely use this value, and you could lose out on the equity that may be due to you. If, however, you obtain an appraisal, it will likely be used instead of the tax assessed value, protecting your interest.
As a divorce attorney in Grapevine TX, we can review the various assets that you have and let you know which ones need an appraisal. If you own a business or are a partner in one, we typically recommend hiring a CPA to complete an appraisal so that the value can be determined. This is mostly necessary when you are an active partner, rather than a passive investor. Your spouse may require an appraisal regardless so getting one done in advance will help you in the long-run.
In addition to getting appraisals, you will need to gather up all of your statements for both assets and debts. The information contained there needs to be transferred to your financial disclosure forms. Everything including the account number, company name, account type, and the amount all needs to be listed out in detail. Simultaneously, if a debt is attached to an asset, you will need to list that information as well. For example, if your truck was used as collateral for a Bank of America loan, you need to list out the truck information next to that debt. A judge will typically keep an asset and debt together when splitting things up so they will need this information readily available.
At times, arguments can be made as to why one spouse should get more debt than the other. If you are trying to prove this you, will need evidence to support your claim. For example, if a Home Depot credit card was used to remodel the kitchen and your spouse is keeping the home, you will need to show a statement or receipts indicating how the funds were spent. Likewise, if you are keeping a living room set that was purchased with a credit card, they may demonstrate that you should have that debt. As a divorce attorney in Grapevine TX, we understand the importance of backing up any claim with evidence. When completing your financial disclosures let us know if you feel your spouse should pay for certain debts and we will let you know what information to gather. If you have any other questions about the form or what is needed, we can help with that as well.