Early in most divorces you fill out a form that lists what you earn, what you spend, what you own and what you owe. States call it different things. A financial affidavit. A financial declaration. An income and expense declaration. The name changes. The signature line does not. In most states you sign it under oath or under penalty of perjury.
Treat it like testimony, because it is. The other side's lawyer will compare every line to your bank statements, your tax returns and the company books. Temporary support is often set from these numbers. A guess that looked harmless in week two becomes a credibility problem in month six.
Six rules.
1. Pull the statements before you write a number.
Do not fill in the expense section from memory. Memory says groceries run $600 a month. Twelve months of card statements may say something else. Pull a year of checking, savings and card statements, total each category, and divide by twelve. It takes an evening. It is the difference between an estimate and an answer.
2. Get your state's form first.
Ask your lawyer for the exact form your court uses and work in its categories, not your own. Every form is built differently. Building your numbers in the court's format from day one saves you from paying someone to rebuild them later.
3. Make it match your tax returns.
The income you report should line up with your recent returns, your W-2 and any K-1. If this year is different, say so on the form and say why. A lost contract, a slow quarter, a change in pay. An unexplained gap between the return and the statement is one of the first things a forensic accountant circles.
4. List every account, even the small ones.
The old 401(k) from two jobs ago. The PayPal balance. The business line of credit. The brokerage account with $300 in it. Leaving something off rarely saves money and often costs trust. If you are not sure whether something belongs on the form, list it and let your lawyer decide.
5. Count what the company pays for you.
If the business pays for your truck, your phone, your fuel or your insurance, many states treat some or all of that as income when support is calculated. Disclose it plainly. Showing it yourself reads as candor. Having it found reads as hiding. Ask your CPA to help you put a fair number on each item.
6. Keep a backup folder for every line.
For each number on the form, keep the document that proves it. Name the files to match the line items. When someone asks where a figure came from, you hand over a page instead of paying for a phone call to explain it. And ask your lawyer whether your state requires you to update the form when something big changes.
Nobody wins a case on a clean financial statement. Plenty of men lose leverage on a sloppy one. Spend the evening. Get it right once.
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Field Notes is educational. It is not legal advice, financial advice or therapy. Laws vary by state. Talk to a lawyer licensed where you live before you act on anything here.
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S.C.