Discovery: Your Key To The Information You Need To Prepare For Your Divorce - By: Lucille Uttermohlen

Too many times, one party to a divorce knows little about the marital debts and assets. Consequently, they are burned in court, because they can't prove something they know is true, but don't have documents to verify. Even when they can prove that a piece of property exists, they frequently find themselves confronted by claims that the property has no value because of the massive debt against it.

If you are extremely rich, and haven't been married very long, it may be possible to squirrel away assets and have your spouse be none the wiser. Your frequent travels to the Cayman Islands or Switzerland may be so common as to not arouse suspicion when you are quietly transferring your vast fortune to dummy accounts under fake names. If you are that well off, chances are pretty good you'll never be one of my clients. Most of us have to work for a living, and don't have high class problems like where to get the Mercedes or Jag detailed, or whether the cook can find the specially cured caviar we enjoyed on the Riviera last season. However, this doesn't mean that spouses don't hide assets from each other. Here is what your lawyer or you can do to make sure you're not victimized by the fact that you once said "I do" to a sneak.

Ask for "discovery". When you sue someone, whether it be for damages because of a personal injury, or because your marriage contract is no longer tenable, you will have to prove what you believe by a "preponderance" of the evidence. This means that there has to be a 51% chance that what you are saying is true for the judge to declare it as fact.

spouse through the process of "discovery". You can "propound interrogatories", which means you send your spouse a list of questions you have, and he has to answer them in writing, under oath. You can force him to appear personally and answer your questions in front of a court reporter. This form of discovery is called a "deposition". Your spouse's answers to these questions can be useful if he tries to change his testimony when you are in court.

Another weapon in your arsonal is the subpoena. You can force people to come to court and share what they know with this document. If they are experts, you will have to pay them for their time. If they aren't willing to show up, you will have to compensate them for their expenses. However, if you subpoena someone, and they don't come to court, they are in contempt, and can even wind up in jail for ignoring your summons.

If your divorce is complicated enough that proving the value and location of assets is necessary, you should hire an attorney. Your lawyer should be able to get your discovery for you, and ask the court for the right punishments or "sanctions" if your spouse is uncooperative. Before you put yourself to the expense of "discovery", however, you should have good reason to believe that your spouse has information or documents you need his help to obtain. Otherwise, you could spend hundreds, even thousands of dollars paying for things you already have.

Copyright (c) 2010 Lucille Uttermohlen

About the Author

Do you have a legal question? Are you looking for an answer to an important relationship concern? Ask The Law Lady. For a prompt answer, write to thelawlady@couple-or-not.com Or read about legal and relationship issues at http://www.couple-or-not.com

Article Directory Source: http://www.articlerich.com/profile/Lucille-Uttermohlen/51774

Additional Articles From - Home | Society | Divorce