Discovery in Divorce: What You Have to Hand Over

She looked at the discovery requests and then looked at me.

“They want everything.”

“Yes.”

“For five years?”

“Yes.”

“Even the…”

“Yes.”

The word discovery makes people nervous. It sounds like a fishing expedition. Like the other side gets to dig through everything you own.

That is not entirely inaccurate. But understanding what it involves before it starts is better than being surprised by it in the middle.

The Standard Discovery Requests

Interrogatories are written questions you are required to answer under oath. They cover your employment, income, assets, debts, and anything else relevant to the issues in the case.

Requests for production ask you to provide documents. Tax returns for three to five years is standard. Bank statements. Credit card records. Retirement account statements. Business financials if applicable. Any prenuptial agreement. Deeds, titles, loan documents.

Depositions are live questioning under oath, with a court reporter present. They are used in more complex or contested cases. (I have taken depositions that lasted six hours. They are not fun for anyone, but they get answers.)

What You Actually Have to Produce

Generally, anything relevant to the issues in the case. Property division requires financial records. Custody disputes may involve school records, medical records, communications. Alimony requires income and expense documentation.

Relevance is defined broadly at the discovery stage. Courts in Shelby County and DeSoto County err on the side of disclosure.

What Happens When Someone Does Not Comply

Discovery is not optional. If a party refuses to respond or responds incompletely, the other side can file a motion to compel. Courts can order compliance, award attorney’s fees for the delay, and in serious cases of willful non-compliance, impose sanctions that include adverse inferences — meaning the court can assume the withheld information was unfavorable to the withholding party.

Obstruction in discovery is expensive and counterproductive. Experienced attorneys on the other side know what to look for, and missing documents raise questions that create as many problems as the documents themselves would have.

Lawyer Bill’s Advice

Discovery is uncomfortable. It is supposed to be.

Both sides are seeing information they would prefer to keep private.

The answer is not to withhold. The answer is to know what is coming and prepare for it.

Your attorney has seen all of it before. Tell them everything so they are not surprised.

If you have questions, reach out at midsouthdivorce.com/ask-lawyer-bill/.

About the Author: William W. Jones IV is a Memphis family law attorney, Rule 31 Listed Family Mediator, and Super Lawyers selectee every consecutive year from 2014 through 2026. Licensed in Tennessee (BPR 022869) and Mississippi (BPR 100707), he practices at The Jones Law Firm, 5100 Poplar Ave, Suite 708, Memphis, TN 38137. Call (901) 761-5353 or visit midsouthdivorce.com.

More on this: Discovery and Mediation, from The Mid-South Divorce Guide, a complimentary guide to divorce in Tennessee and Mississippi.