In my last post https://strengthinmystory.com/getting-a-lawyer/ I discussed that once you have been served divorce papers that you need to get a lawyer. And the right lawyer at that. Once you have obtained a lawyer they will send you paperwork called the disclosure statement. The disclosure statement is the longest paperwork you will complete in this process.
What is the Disclosure Statement
This portion of your divorce paperwork is basically where you disclose all clerical information regarding your life and your marriage. This is particularly important for denoting assets and debts. You will be denoting them for both yourself and your partner to the best of your knowledge. It is critical that you are completely honest on this paperwork. Your soon to be ex will also be filling out the same information. Your version and theirs will be compared against each other. If there are any discrepancies your lawyer will clarify them with you.
Challenges I Ran Into
I experience many challenges along my road to divorce, but the disclosure statement I found to be incredibly stressful.
- There is a ton of legal jargon. Because of this there many times that I wasn’t sure how to answer the questions
- As I was no longer living at my house. It was difficult to know what all of the assets were. I had to try to visualize the entire house in my mind. Moving from room to room from memory.
- There were documents that I did not have with me that were necessary to submit. I didn’t have them because they were in the filing cabinet at my house.
- I was also incredibly concerned that I was doing everything wrong. This made me extra stressed because I thought my soon to be ex would try to take advantage of me.
Solutions for Disclosure Completion
I did find several solutions to the challenges that I discussed in the last section.
- Don’t be scared to ask questions!! If you don’t know what a question is wanting you are not alone. You can research via search engines, ask someone who has filled this out before, and/or ask your lawyer.
- Take your time and try to picture one level of your home and then one room at a time. You can also ask someone who has been to your house to walk it through via memory with you. Remember that the assets that are most important will come to mind. Anything else can be replaced. They are just things.
- Although it can be stressful when you don’t have all of the physical documents, there are resources. You can work with your bank, insurance agencies, and employer to get digital versions of these documents. It is okay to ask for help!!
- This is important paperwork and it is stressful. So it is important to take some breaks while working on it. Do what you need to do for yourself. I remember one day I was so stressed from working on this paperwork for several days in a row. I took a moment to go for a ride with my dog to get some ice cream. This was like a huge weight lifted and I was much fresher and focused when I worked on it the next day.
If you find yourself working on a disclosure statement breathe, take the time you need, and ask all of the questions.
