Life...

Get Copies of All Financial Records

Your husband might start hiding your financial records, hoping that you won't discover the title to the oil well -- or at least that you won't know how he has been wasting money, reducing his apparent income, hiding health benefits, hiding his pension's value, hiding his 401(k)'s value, and so on.

Make photocopies of the following documents while you and he are both living in the home -- or on a visit to your spouse's separate residence.

• Business records. General ledger, balance sheet, income statement, invoices, etc.
• Tax returns. Your tax returns for the last few years.
• Insurance policies. Life and automobile insurance.
• Checkbook. See what your spouse's transactions have been.
• Credit card statements. See what your spouse's purchases have been.
• Brokerage statements. Statements from banks, brokerage firms, mutual fund companies, etc.
• Mortgage statements. Statements from your mortgage lender.
• Retirement plan documents. Descriptions of any retirement plans.
• Medical coverage descriptions. Descriptions of any medical coverages you have.

You might know that, legally, your husband has to disclose all this anyway. But if you have copies, you can be sure he does it.

Also, at the least, you save yourself the money you would spend making your lawyer ask his lawyer for the documents.

Email this page on to a friend.

Disclaimer: We are not giving legal advice. No warranties. We disclaim all legal liability. More...