Between the time you file the initial pleadings and the Initial Status Conference has been scheduled, you will have about 40 days to complete your financial disclosures.

1.  Complete the Children & Families in Transition Seminar.  At some point between filing the Petition, and attending the Initial Status conference, you should attend this mandatory seminar.  Click on the link for the seminar schedule, so you can plan accordingly.  If you live out of state, you will need to ask the Court for permission to take an alternative class offered through the court system where you live.  If you are in the military and are deployed, the Court will generally accept a memo from a chaplain indicating that you have received 1 1/2 hours of training in issues that parents and children face during dissolution.

2.  Consult Form 35.1, Mandatory Disclosures, which is also attached as the last page of the Domestic Relations Case Management Order, contains the list of financial documents the spouses are required to exchange with each other in every case, even if the case is uncontested.  The list contains such items as tax returns, pay stubs, credit card and bank statements.

3.  Complete JDF 1111 - Sworn Financial Statement (PDF | MS Word | Auto-Calculating MS Word), and, if applicable, the JDF 1111ss Supporting Schedules for Assets (PDF | MS Word | Auto-Calculating MS Word).  These two forms advise your spouse of your income, expenses, assets, and debts.

4.  Complete JDF 1104 - Certificate of Compliance with Mandatory Financial Disclosures (PDF | MS Word). Tick the boxes of the applicable financial documents you will be providing to your spouse.

5.  Provide spouse with a copy of the Sworn Financial Statement, Certificate of Compliance, and mandatory disclosures.

6.  File with the Court the Sworn Financial Statement and the Certificate of Compliance.

Note that your tax return, pay stubs, bank statements, and the other mandatory financial disclosures are NOT filed with the Court. Instead, you provide them to your spouse, and simply certify to the Court that you have done so.