Evidence Gathering
Documents Needed To Gather Evidence For Your Family Law Case In AZ
Find the forms you need to collect the evidence necessary for a successful outcome with your family law case.
There are certain circumstances where a case will require additional evidence. You can file a motion to request admissions, employmenet records and other documents important to your case. Below is an outline of the documents you need in Arizona Family Courts for evidence gathering.
As part of a divorce, establishment, modification, or enforcement matter, a parent seeking custody of minor children may find that it is beneficial for the court hearing their case to be aware of any previous investigations. Parents may also want to notify the court of any other actions that have been taken by the Department of Child Safety (DCS). In Arizona, DCS maintains such files and records in strict confidentiality. For DCS to be able to release the records to the court, parents must file a Motion for Disclosure of Department of Child Safety Records. Because of how long it takes for disclosure of those records from DCS, it is important to file your Motion for Disclosure of Department of Child Safety Records as early as possible in your case.
Sometimes a person or persons who are involved in a court case will fail to share information which they are legally required to divulge. In such situations, a Motion for Order Compelling Disclosure or Discovery, more commonly referred to as a Motion to Compel, may be filed with the court. Such an order asks the court to instruct to legally compel the party withholding information to share the required information.
Should you receive such a notice it is imperative that you answer all questions and respond to all requests contained therein. You are legally required to do so. Avoid waiting before responding or ignoring the notice. Should you fail to answer the questions, or if you fail to respond to the requests, you will then risk the court taking legal action against you which may include an award of the other party’s attorney’s fees and/or costs. You will also be required to sign and notarize the notice, and by doing so, you will be legally swearing that the answers you are providing are complete, accurate, and correct.
If you have received a Request for Admissions from Arizona Family Court, it is crucial to know what this request entails. Just as its name suggests, a Request for Admissions is a document asking one legal party to admit or agree that the facts or the statements claimed within the document are in fact true. If you have gotten such a legal request, you will need to respond and either confirm or deny the statements claimed within the document. Once you receive the request, you have 40 days to make your response. You may issue an objection, but you will want to be aware that there are only limited legal reasons the court will accept an objection to answering the request. Need more information? Let us help with legal documents in AZ.
Should the status of a party’s employment or salary come into question, or should it need to be verified for a legal procedure, a Request for Employment Information and Records may be submitted to that party’s employer. Such requests are beneficial when used in determining child support allocations.
This document is used to verify information including:
- Whether the person is employed
- Their salary
- Medical and retirement benefits and costs associated
In a divorce, it is not uncommon for one party to refuse to disclose information or hide critical, information-containing documents from the other party. In such a case, the other party may file a Request for Production of Documents and Things. This type of written request is often utilized to secure access to documentation and information like:
- State and federal tax returns
- Information about shared health insurance policies
- Financial information such as bank statements and retirement fund information
- Housing and real estate information, contracts, and details
In Arizona divorce and other family law procedures, both sides are required by law to share certain information with one another. Each party must submit to the other a legal statement which addresses and details issues of child support, parenting time, spousal support & maintenance, as well as details concerning properties and debt. This statement must be sent either directly to the other party or to their respective attorneys. A Rule 49 Disclosure Statement will also contain supporting evidence such as:
- Tax statements
- Proof of salary such as pay stubs
- Evidence of conversations and correspondence such as letters or copies of emails
- Contracts and records of business
- Financial statements
- Telephone recordings
A subpoena is a legal document issued by the court and formally signed by the Clerk of the Court. It is a legally binding demand for a person to appear in court, and/or for a person to give testimony, or to relinquish documents or information to the court. If you receive a subpoena, it will inform you of your legal rights and expected duties, and it will also tell you when and where you should present yourself. Your subpoena should also notify you regarding which documents you might be required to bring with you to submit to the court.
During the fact-finding portion of a family law court case, each party will submit Uniform Family Law Interrogatories to the other. These prescribed questionnaires are uniform in content, and both parties in every case are asked the same set of predetermined questions. However, the questions may have more detailed scope for families with children, and there may be fewer questions for a child-free couple.
Questions include information about your background, medical history, religious beliefs, education, criminal history, driving record, property, taxes, employment, income, benefits, insurance, current living situation, plans for child support, parenting time, and decision-making rights, and more.
Once you receive a Uniform Family Law Interrogatories document, you have 40 days to answer and submit your response. You will also need to sign the document and have it notarized. By doing so, you swear that the information you are providing is complete, accurate, and correct.
Unlike Uniform Family Law Interrogatories, the questions that are asked in Non-Uniform Family Law Interrogatories are not predetermined. They do not come from a pre-established list of questions and will therefore differ between cases. It is important to note that Non-Uniform Family Law Interrogatories are not always used in Arizona Family Court.
Whether you are just beginning your case or your case has already ended and you need to make modifications, we are here to help. Our services ensure you have the correct documents and that you are not only submitting them correctly, but in a way that best protects you and your family.
