Describe a minimum of five ways in which the client in a divorce case may serve as a valuable resource in the discovery process

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Among other activities, the client may be asked to:
a) Photograph the entire contents of the marital residence (house or apartment) with particular attention to any potentially valuable items such as jewelry, antiques, gun collections, and the like.
b) Keep a journal concerning such topics as parenting situations reflecting the particular strengths or weaknesses of each parent, unexplained phone calls and absences from the home, incidents of abuse of any kind, work being performed "under the table," etc.
c) Locate and make copies of important documents, such as deeds, titles, registrations, bank account statements, credit card statements, travel materials (such as airline tickets and hotel invoices), employment records, brokerage account statements, state and federal tax returns, mortgage applications, etc.
d) Make copies of relevant electronic documents, such as e-mails and financial records.
e) Make a list of the names, addresses, and telephone numbers of potential lay witnesses for the other party and identify the matters about which they might testify.
f) Make a list of the names, addresses, and telephone numbers of potential friendly lay witnesses and describe the matters about which they might testify.
g) Make a list of the names, addresses, and contact numbers of any professionals, such as physicians, therapists, accountants, financial advisors, and appraisers, consulted by either and/or both of the parties for their benefit or the benefit of their children.