A Helpful hint for your Virginia divorce case

In any kind of legal case, but particularly a divorce case, there’s a lot of paperwork involved. Depending on the type of case you’re going through—whether it’s custody, a contested divorce, or an uncontested divorce—the type of paperwork may look a little bit different, but the end result is the same: there’s a whole lot of it. Managing it, figuring out what’s what, and beginning to come up with a plan for how to divide it between the two of you takes a whole lot of work.  If you’re looking for a helpful hint for your Virginia divorce case, look no further.
It makes sense, of course. Divorce takes a life that two people have shared, and divides it. We’re not just talking about checking and savings accounts, either. We’re talking about everything that makes up a life together. Houses, cars, personal property, savings accounts, checking accounts, retirement accounts, stocks, bonds, mutual funds, credit card debt, lines of credit, 401(k) loans—and of course the big stuff: child custody, visitation, child support, and spousal support.
In order to figure out how to divide everything between the two of you, your attorney (and your husband’s attorney, if he has one) are going to need to see copies of all of these documents. They’re going to want to verify what you have, how much it’s worth, and where it is. Without getting copies of statements and other information like this, much of what your attorney would have to do on your behalf would be based on guesswork—which, obviously, is not ideal.
To help your attorney, you should be prepared to provide her with all the information that she requests. I know it’s not exactly a rip roaring good time; really, it’s a lot like doing your income taxes: boring, confusing, and frustrating. But, really, knowing what there is to divide is one of the absolute most important things.
But how do you get that information to your attorney? We have some clients who bring us shoeboxes full of receipts, or file folders full of documents (all stuffed in there haphazardly with no obvious organizational scheme). As you can imagine, not only is it difficult—and time consuming and expensive– for us to go through and determine what is important (as well as what is and isn’t there), it also means that you no longer have your original copies.
If you’re preparing to go through a divorce or custody case, probably one of the best tools you could get is free and easy to get. Instead of giving your attorney a bunch of random copies of documents, why not scan them all and provide them digitally?
These days, there are all kinds of free apps that will allow you to scan your documents. You don’t have to buy a big fancy scanner to attach to your computer; you can scan and email directly from your smartphone. It really couldn’t be easier, and it’s really one of the best things you could possibly do for your case. Not only will you be providing information quickly (potentially within an hour or two of when the attorney requests it!), but you can make sure to have the information you provide be organized—which will save you a considerable amount of money.
My favorite scanner app is called Tiny Scanner, and it’s available on the App store—for free. There are others, too—CamScanner and iScanner. There are several paid ones, too—I like Scanner Pro 7, and it’s just $3.99.
In many of these, you can scan and email multiple pages, and it’s as easy as using your cell phone’s camera.
If you’re getting ready to go through a divorce or custody case, get a scanner app now. It’ll help you save time, money, and frustration later, and will make sure that your attorney has the information she needs to get your case resolved.  You’ve never been there before, but we have–which is why I thought you’d like this helpful hint for your Virginia divorce case.
For more information or to schedule an appointment with one of our licensed and experienced Virginia divorce and custody attorneys, give our office a call at (757) 425-5200.