Many couples facing a divorce wonder why
the time and expense associated with discovery is necessary. They figure that
they know what the other spouse’s assets are; after all, you watched them buy the
stuff in the first place. They think they understand the value of all the
retirement and bank accounts because they’ve had conversations about them. Many
people believe their spouse would not or could not hide any important
information so why go through the trouble at all? The problem is, what you
don’t know can hurt you in this instance, which is why the discovery process is
so important.
Discovery is the legal process meant to
extract information from the opposing party in a lawsuit. Gathering facts early
on in litigation may actually help minimize costs in the long run by narrowing
the issues that need to be addressed at trial or in settlement negotiations. Discovery
involves numerous approaches, including: Interrogatories, Requests for
Production of Documents, depositions (both written and oral), physical and
mental examinations, Requests for Admission, and others. The most important and
most commonly used discovery methods are Interrogatories, Requests for
Production of Documents, and Requests for Admissions.
Interrogatories are questions posed to
the opposing party. In Ohio, a party may send up to 40 Interrogatories to the
opposing party. The opposing party is required to answer the Interrogatories
under oath which is meant to increase the likelihood that the information
provided will be truthful. If the party who receives the interrogatories
refuses to answer, the court is able to impose sanctions.
Requests for Production of Documents
(RPDs) are exactly what they sound like. An attorney makes formal requests for
documents in the other party’s possession. If the party refuses to release
requested documents that can also lead to sanctions by the court. Unlike interrogatories,
there is no limit to the number of requests that can be made.
Admissions are statements presented to
the other party. The opposing party is asked to admit or deny the truth of
certain matters. Admissions are very powerful and help attorneys narrow down
the number of issues that are really in contention between the parties. Another
important bit of information about Admissions are that if the other party does
not answer a request in a timely manner, the request can be deemed admitted.
As was mentioned above, discovery, when
done properly, can help to uncover hidden assets. Many people may think they
know what their spouse owns and yet discovery can still reveal some hidden
assets. Unfortunately, it’s also possible that discovery works the other way,
revealing that the couple has less money than they thought. Either way, the
process has worked. It’s critical that before the divorce proceeds your Ohio
family law attorney
understands what is out there so he can properly craft a plan that is right for
you.
If you find yourself facing the prospect
of divorce, contact an experienced Ohio family law attorney who can help guide you through the
difficult process. Count on the expertise of Twinsburg family law attorney Carol
L. Gasper.
Source:
“Step
by Step Explanation of The Discovery Process,” by Cathy Meyer,
published at About.com.
See
Our Related Blog Posts:
No comments:
Post a Comment