In
many family law cases, one or both of the parties has information that the
other needs to review to be prepared to negotiate and/or go to court. A common example involving property division in divorce cases is when one of the spouses has retirement
account statements that the other does not have access to. Or, in cases where child support is being
determined, the party who will be receiving support may not have access to the
other’s paystubs and tax returns, both of which are used to calculate support.
If
there is only a limited amount of information that needs to be exchanged and
the parties are getting along, the attorneys will often agree to exchange
documents informally or on an “as-needed” basis. In more complex cases or high conflict cases,
the attorneys will usually serve formal discovery requests on the other party
(sometimes formal discovery requests are the most efficient way to collect the
necessary information, even in amicable cases).
TYPES OF DISCOVERY
Two
of the most common types of discovery are Requests for Production and
Interrogatories. Requests for Production
generally pertain to documents, but they can include videos, electronic files,
photographs, etc. Frequently requested
documents include: bank statements, retirement account statements, credit card
statements, tax returns, pay stubs, medical records and phone records. The number and scope of the requests usually
depends on the issues at stake in the lawsuit.
Interrogatories
are questions that ask you to state facts about the case, and these too can
vary widely depending on the subject of the lawsuit. Typical interrogatories in support cases will
ask about a person’s employment status, pay and benefits. In property cases, the interrogatories will
usually ask the recipient to state the value the property and debts and how
they propose that the property be divided.
RESPONDING TO DISCOVERY
REQUESTS
Once
a party has been served with discovery, they have 30 days to respond (sometimes
33 days, depending on the method of service).
Your Austin family law attorney should forward the requests to you as
soon as they’re received, and set up a time to review each request with you so
that you understand exactly what information needs to be provided and when your
attorney needs your answers. Since,
there are potentially serious consequences to providing late or incomplete
responses to discovery requests, it’s very important that you follow your
attorney’s instructions carefully.
