Disclosure During Uncontested Divorce | Santa Clarita

When you go through a divorce, one of the biggest elements is the disclosure process.  This means disclosure of your income and expenses as well as a detailed schedule of assets and debts.

I am asked why we have to complete the disclosure process when it is an uncontested divorce.  The easy answer is because the courts say we have to.  But in reality the disclosure procedure is very important, even in an uncontested divorce.

Divorce is all about disclosure if you think out it.  It boils down to dividing up what you have collectively.  What you had before marriage and after separation is yours (Separate Property) and what you accumulated during marriage (Community Property) is supposed to be divided equally.

This is why the courts want you to complete all the disclosure paperwork.  The only way the court can know if the property and debt is being evenly divided is if it is disclosed.  But in an uncontested divorce the court will generally not get involved, so the disclosure process is meant to inform the parties of what is on the table to divide.

The best way to do your disclosures during an uncontested divorce is for one of the spouses to do theirs first.  In most cases, the disclosures will be almost identical, except for perhaps a few accounts that the other spouse opened that you are not aware of, etc.

So what we do in our office is work with one spouse to complete their disclosures.  We get everything copied, signed and served on the other spouse.  Then we make a duplicate set, but change out the party information on the paperwork and ask the other spouse to add anything that is not on the disclosures.

Completing the disclosures this way during an uncontested divorce makes it a much more simpler process.  Be careful!  Nobody likes doing the disclosures because they are a pain in the butt.  Don’t get hung up on it, just get it done.

If you need assistance completing your financial disclosures during divorce please give us a call.  We are a licensed and bonded legal document preparation service that specializes in the divorce process.  We are headquartered in Santa Clarita, CA and serve all of Los Angeles County.