Managing the school's legal risks

During divorce proceedings, spouses are usually mandated to reveal specific details regarding their assets, earnings and debts so that the final settlement made may incorporate information concerning all known aspects. However, a spouse may choose to lie about their debts or assets in order to retain the full interest in property or force the other spouse to repay more in debt than their rightful share. A family law lawyer can help you unmask any lies on financial disclosures by your spouse.

Variety of lies on disclosures

A spouse may commit different types of lies on disclosures. A spouse may misrepresent the type of assets that they own, the value of a specific asset, the means by which they acquired the asset or the sum of a specific debt. Moreover, a spouse may fail to reveal having a particular asset at all.

Getting to the bottom of it all

There are a number of ways a lawyer will help you determine whether or not your spouse shares the proper information.

Document appraisal

A sure way of ascertaining whether a spouse is insincere or honest about their asset and debt disclosures is to weigh up information about these items listed on the disclosures with the data included on statements as well as other documents related to the assets and debts. With the help of a family lawyer, a person who suspects that their ex-spouse is hiding things on financial disclosures can request for a list of documents, including income tax returns, monthly bank statements, mortgage statements, check stubs, monthly credit card statements, bills of sale, household bills, paperwork pertaining to any pension or retirement accounts and documents concerning child support.

Discovery

Another way a family lawyer can obtain information about a particular spouse's assets and debts is to ask for data from the other side by means of formal discovery procedures. Attorneys may request parties to litigation to hand over specific documents that may be pertinent to the divorce proceedings. This may be an effective approach especially if one partner has custody of all the documents and declines to share it with the other partner. The family law attorney may pose questions to the spouse which they must respond to under oath.

Private investigator

By using the services of a private investigator, a spouse can determine whether or not the other spouse is hiding anything concerning financial disclosures. An investigator can carry out surveillance to discover the whereabouts of a spouse and whether they have any unlisted businesses or residences that aren't listed as part of the proceedings. The investigator may also dig into an individual's background to establish particular ties that might lead to assets.