Financial Affidavits are your Friend

And, if you do not give them the attention they deserve, can also be your enemy. I know that completing a financial affidavit is tedious and time consuming. Revising them can feel worse, because you have already gone through all of that work once. But, they are probably the most important document in your entire case. Why? Because it is your statement, your proclamation, of the value of your assets, disclosure of your income and debts, and your cost of living. A court will rely on the numbers that you include, for the better or worse of your case. For example, you have made a guess at the value of your home, and write that value down on your financial affidavit. You and your spouse have written the same value - so the court and everyone involved does not think that there is a dispute about the value of that asset. Then, you find yourself at trial. Somewhere along the line you have realized that your house is worth a lot more than you thought it was, and you hope to get your fair share of that house, but the judge looks at you and says that YOU have already signed a document that stated that your house was only worth the lesser value and that's all you're going to get! You thought that financial affidavit was just a form to fill out, and now the court is taking it seriously!

The above is but one of many examples I could describe to illustrate why your financial affidavit is more than just some form that I am making you fill out, some make work that you should not have to do. Of course, there is more to talk about in the above example, including what I would have discussed with you about the value of your home between the time you filled out your first financial affidavit and trial - but that's another posting.