Documents to Show Your Covington, LA Divorce Attorney

Getting divorced isn’t the same thing as just breaking up. You cannot just say goodbye and walk away. You and your soon-to-be-ex are legally married, which means you are about to break a legal contract. For this reason, divorce is complicated, not just emotionally but legally and financially as well. Dividing up property, assets, and other items a couple has acquired throughout their marriage is often one of the most contentious aspects of divorce. Thankfully, you aren’t fighting on your own. Covington, LA divorce attorneys at Ellen Cronin Badeaux will help alleviate some of your legal and financial stresses by advocating for a division of property that works in your favor.

In order to do this, we’ll need some documentation. You can help save your divorce attorney time, and save yourself some money, by gathering important legal and financial documents together. This “proof” is necessary to fight for what is rightfully yours. The following is a list of documents to show your divorce attorney.

Documents to Show Your Covington, LA Divorce Attorney

• Individual income tax returns for the past few years, up to five years
• Business income tax returns for the past few years, up to five years
• Proof of your current income
• Proof of your ex-spouse’s current income
• Employment contracts
• Benefits statements
• Mortgages
• Utility bills
• Student loan debt
• Other regularly-occurring or monthly bills
• Kids school tuition
• Prenuptial agreement
• Bank statements
• Certificates of deposit
• Pension statements
• Retirement account statements
• Trusts
• Stock portfolios
• Stock options
• Property tax statements
• Credit card statements
• Loan documents
• Monthly budget worksheet
• Completed financial statements
• Life insurance policies
• Health insurance policies
• Homeowner’s insurance policies
• Automobile insurance policies
• Personal property appraisals
• Real property appraisals
• List of personal property, including home furnishings, jewelry, artwork, computers, home office equipment, clothing, and furs, etc.
• List of property owned by each spouse prior to marriage
• List of property acquired by each spouse individually by gift or inheritance during the marriage
• List of contents of safety deposit boxes
• Wills
• Living Wills
• Powers of Attorney
• Durable Powers of Attorney
• Advance Health Care Directives

It is important to keep in mind that everyone’s divorce case is unique and may require additional documentation. For instance, you may not have signed a prenuptial agreement, so that’s not something to worry about however your child has additional expenses not listed here, like medical costs for a chronic condition or daily sports or music lessons. All of that needs to be factored in so you are stuck paying more than your fair share.

Yes- looking at this list, it does seem like a lot. It can be a little overwhelming. Don’t worry! We’ll go over all of this at your initial consultation. Every divorce is different because every couple enters and leaves a marriage under different circumstances and with different assets. Perhaps you both entered the marriage with little more than a paycheck and now have a large stock portfolio and several mortgages. Maybe only one of you entered the marriage financially well off and this spouse intends to keep it that way.

Whatever your exact situation, your attorney will fight for you to come out of the other side of your divorce with your life intact. To get started, please contact us at (985)-892-1955. We may be able to answer some of your questions over the phone as well.