Mississippi Family Law Blog

Step 3: Get a complete picture of your family finances

One of the primary purposes of the divorce process is to divide the assets and debts of the marriage. You must have a complete picture of your family finances before you start the process of dividing assets and debts.

Mississippi Chancery Court Rule 8.05 requires the parties in domestic relation cases involving financial issues to submit:

• A detailed written statement of actual income and expenses and assets and liabilities;
• Copies of the preceding year’s Federal and State Income Tax returns, in full form as filed, or copies of the W-2s if the return has not yet been filed; and
• A general statement of the providing party describing employment history and earnings from the date of the divorce.

A copy of the worksheet I have clients complete in order to comply with Mississippi Chancery Court Rule 8.05 is found here. Use it as a guide in collecting your financial information. Once you answer the questions below, completing this form should be relatively easy.

For your family, answer the following:

A. What do we own
B. What do we owe
C. What do we make
D. What do we spend