Why Do I Have To Provide All My Financial Details To My Ex?

If you are in the position of having to deal with the Family Law system or the Family Law courts, you may already have been told that you need to provide all of your financial information to the Court and to your ex. If you haven’t been told this yet, you probably soon will be.

It is not uncommon for us to hear our clients objecting to this, and not everyone is too keen to provide the information and the documents. We are often asked why this is required.

One short and easy answer is that the Court will order it, the Family Law Act requires it, and if you don’t comply you will potentially be in a world of pain when you are next before the Court.

What are the rules on the disclosure of financial details?

The rules are there for a number of reasons though. Those reasons include:

1. The Court needs to ensure that any settlement is fair. It cannot judge what is fair or not unless the full picture of the assets and liabilities is clearly understood. 
2. If you and your ex don’t both fully understand what assets and liabilities there are, you won’t feel confident to try and negotiate an agreement. A negotiated outcome may be a good idea. Give it the best chance of happening. 
3. If full and complete disclosure of your situation is not provided, that can be a basis to re-open the case later – probably the last thing you want to have happened. 
4. If the Court decides that you have not provided full and complete disclosure, they have a number of penalties that they can impose. People have been sent to prison for not complying with orders to provide disclosure, which again is something we are sure you would rather avoid. 
5. You probably want to know the full extent of the assets and liabilities that your ex has – so naturally they feel the same and they want to know the full picture for you.

The Family Law system can be complicated and it’s not always easy to work out the best way to proceed. Even the best of us find it hard to make clear decisions when we are dealing with our own circumstances. There is a reason why a lawyer who acts for themselves has a fool for a client. Don’t be foolish – engage an experienced family law team to give you the practical and sensible advice that you need to navigate your way through the system. Call Aylward Game on 1800 217 217.