A major issue that arises in many Sacramento child support cases and Sacramento spousal support cases is determining each party’s true income. In some cases, one spouse appears to have artificially low income and the other spouse knows this income is misleading based upon their recollection of the earning history during marriage. This can happen in a couple of ways.
The spouse may be self-employed and underreporting their income on their tax returns. They may be a wage earner and close with their boss and have convinced their boss to artificially lower their paystubs for purposes of the support hearing.
In cases like these, it is important to do legal discovery so that financial proof of your spouse’s actual income can be presented to the Sacramento support court. Subpoenas should be sent to the spouse’s bank accounts for transaction records. Demands to produce documents should be sent to the spouse for vital financial documents like paystubs, profit and loss statements, and tax returns. There are other legal discovery options to pursue as well, such as depositions and interrogatories.
If you believe your spouse is underreporting or misrepresenting their income and are having trouble proving it, please give us a call. We can help you understand your rights to legal discovery and proof of income in a free half-hour attorney consultation.