What Documents Do I Need To Prepare For Divorce?

When you are planning to file for divorce, it is essential to get a variety of financial documents and paperwork in order. Depending upon your situation, it might be a good idea to gather these materials in advance before your spouse is served with divorce papers. In other situations, the spouses may be on relatively good terms and might have reached an agreement about divorce together, making it easier to access the documents you will need to move forward with your divorce. The majority of the documents we are going to discuss with you below will be used to identify marital property and to divide it between the spouses according to what Florida law determines to be equitable to both parties.

Premarital or Postnuptial Agreement 

If you have a premarital agreement or a postnuptial agreement, it is critical to have a copy of this document as you move forward with your divorce case. Your Florida divorce attorney will need to examine the terms of the premarital or postnuptial agreement to determine its enforceability and, if the terms appear to be enforceable, what the agreement means for the division of marital property. 

Income Tax Returns and Pay Stubs 

You will need to gather all income tax returns, pay stubs, and related documentation. Depending upon the specific facts of your case, you may need these documents to go back for a number of years, or you may only need more recent tax returns and pay stubs. If you and your spouse filed “married filing separately” returns at any point, you certainly need to include these—tax returns are not limited to joint tax returns during the marriage. 

Property Tax Documents 

If you own real estate with your spouse, from your marital home to any vacation property or income properties, you will need to have copies of property tax documents that show the tax valuation for the property (or properties) and the amount of tax that has been paid on those properties during the marriage. 

Bank Account and Investment Account Statements 

You must have copies of all bank account and investment account statements. This includes savings accounts, checking accounts, retirement accounts, and any other accounts regardless of whether they are shared in name with you and your spouse or are in just one spouse’s name. 

Receipts and Appraisals for Tangible Assets 

The division of marital property will require all tangible assets to be classified as separate or marital property, and all marital property will be subject to division. In order to ensure that all marital property is divided equitably, the court will need to determine the values of those assets. Receipts and recent appraisals can help with valuation. 

Contact an Orlando Divorce Lawyer Today 

Getting ready for a divorce in Orlando requires both spouses to gather all paperwork they have concerning assets and debts acquired prior to and after the date of marriage, along with any existing premarital or postnuptial agreement. Your Orlando divorce attorney can help you to determine whether any necessary documentation is missing and can begin the process of preparing for property division in your divorce case. Contact Anderson & Ferrin today to learn more about how our firm can help.