Client Resources

Completing your financial declaration

What you will need and when its due.

A financial declaration is required in many family law cases. You will need to complete a financial declaration if your case involves in any of the following issues:

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• divorce;

• temporary separation;

• separate maintenance;

• parentage;

• child custody;

• child support, and

• modification of a domestic relations order.

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The reason that financial declarations are required in these types of cases is because these cases almost always involve issues of child support, alimony, property distribution, and/or debt division.

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If you are the petitioner (i.e. the party filing for divorce), you must serve your financial declaration and attachments on the respondent within 14 days after the respondent files their first answer to the petition. 

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If you are the respondent (i.e. the party served with divorce papers), you must serve your financial declaration and attachments on the petitioner within 42 days after filing of the first answer, or within 28 days after the respondent's appearance in the case, whichever is later.

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Financial declarations are not required in the following types of cases:

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• enforcing previous orders; 

• adoptions;

• cohabitant abuse protective orders; 

• child protective orders;

• civil stalking injunctions; or

• grandparent visitation petitions.

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If your case is one that involves completing a financial declaration, you will be required to submit evidence regarding your income, assets, debts, and expenses, in addition to completing a form that may be filed with the court.

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The court requires the following documents to be submitted with your financial declaration:

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• Copies of statements that are reasonably available to the party verifying the items and amounts listed on the form;

• Copies for the two tax years before the petition was filed, complete federal and state income tax returns, including Form W-2 and supporting tax schedules and attachments, filed by or on behalf of the party or by or on behalf of any entity in which the party has a majority or controlling interest, including, but not limited to, Form 1099 and Form K-1;

• Pay stubs and other evidence of all earned and un-earned income for the 12 months before the petition was filed;

• All loan applications and financial statements prepared by or used by the party within the 12 months before the petition was filed;

• Documents verifying the value of all real estate in which the party has an interest, including, but not limited to, the most recent appraisal, tax valuation and refinance documents;

• All statements for the 3 months before the petition was filed for all financial accounts, including, but not limited to, checking, savings, money market funds, certificates of deposit, brokerage, investment, retirement, regardless of whether the account has been closed including those held in that party’s name, jointly with another person or entity, or as a trustee or guardian, or in someone else’s name on that party’s behalf.

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Find the financial declaration form at:

https://www.utcourts.gov/howto/family/financial_declaration/docs/1352FA_Financial_Declaration.pdf

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Find out more at: 

https://www.utcourts.gov/howto/family/financial_declaration/