When confronted with any court case, many are concerned with the items of evidence that they may be confronted with as well as the items of evidence they may need to present to the court. A divorce case is no different. There are many different documents, witnesses, testimony, or experts that may be required in your case. Narrowing down the issues in your specific case with your Florida Divorce Attorney will allow you to focus on gathering the proper evidence for your case that will allow you to present an accurate depiction of your case to the court.
The first item to note when discussing the topic of evidence is relevancy. Relevancy in legal terms is the fact of making an event or item more or less probable. This is an extremely broad term for the courts to decipher. However, it can become simpler when in the context of a dissolution of marriage case.
When dissolving a marriage, the court tackles 4 main items: equitable distribution of property, child custody, child support, and alimony. Each of these topics require certain types of evidence that may only be relevant in their own arena. For instance, the attendance of a parent at a child’s doctor’s appointment would not be relevant to determine the equitable distribution of property. Therefore, it is important to discuss with your Florida Divorce Attorney, the specific topics in your divorce and the necessary evidence to provide to the court that proves your side of the matter to be more probable.
One of the most notable events that will occur in your divorce, that provides a great deal of evidence, is the process of Mandatory Disclosure. Mandatory Disclosure requires each party to exchange a myriad of different documents to provide the court and the parties with an accurate and full description of the issues at hand. The documents required include: financial affidavit, tax returns, W-2s, loan applications, all sources of income, deeds, leases, bank account statements, retirement account statements, life and health insurance policies, credit card statements, and any marital agreements between the parties. These documents lay the foundation for the evidence that are necessary and may be presented before the court in each case.
After reviewing these documents, your Florida Divorce Attorney may find it necessary to supplement certain documents or claims made by you or your spouse. For instance, in regards to child custody disputes, many cases will present the reports of a Guardian Ad Litem and Parenting Coordinator before the court to show a third party opinion on the relationships existing between the parents or a parent and a child. Further, if you or your partner are not cultivating a safe environment or encouraging a relationship between the child and the other parent such evidence may be presented through text messages, emails, social media posts or even witness testimony.
In other cases, where alimony is at issue, it may be important to supplement a claim for alimony with the testimony of experts or physicians. For instance, if you are disabled, you may need a physician to testify to your disability and describe your limitations to the court that prevent you from being employed and expand upon your need for financial support. In contrast, you may need to employ the testimony of a vocational expert to determine the actual employability of a spouse and how they may not need alimony and rather income should be imputed to them due to their underemployed or unemployed status.
There are many forms of evidence that may come forward in your case. The key is employing a Florida Divorce Attorney who is experienced in handling this evidence and ensuring it is presented in the proper way to support your claims. Contact a Florida Divorce Attorney today to ensure you are provided with the proper understanding of the evidence presented against you and needed from you in your divorce proceedings.
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