Gathering evidence for your Florida divorce case can be overwhelming. Consider using the discovery tool called Application for Admission found in Rule 12.370 if you have applied for alimony or child support and your spouse does not provide the required financial information. Remember, it is up to you to prove your spouse’s income to win a prize. An application for admission can help you prove your case.
What is an application for admission?
These requests ask that your spouse admit certain facts that appear to be in dispute in your case or that your spouse admit that certain documents are “authentic.” (Documents must be “authenticated” before they are admitted as evidence at trial). So, for example, if your spouse has not filed the financial affidavit or has not provided mandatory disclosure documents about their income, you can ask your spouse to admit that they earn a certain salary. Your request would go like this: “Admit that you earn $ 3,000 per month in net pay.”
Either party can submit an application for admission. This article is primarily written for a petitioner looking to prove a disputed claim, but respondents can also use the Request for Admission.
Why use applications for admission?
Using the Application for Admission can help you narrow down the issues that the judge must decide in a contested case and / or show that the documents are authentic. This is because any matter admitted to this process is “conclusively established” for the purposes of your divorce case. That means you have proven that fact in your case.
Using the income example in the previous section, if your spouse admits that he earns $ 3,000 in net income per month, you will not have to prove income by other methods at trial, even if your spouse did not file a financial affidavit. You can present the admissions in court and they will be your proof. Because you have now verified your spouse’s income, you can calculate child support based on your admitted net income.
Scheduling an application for admission
An application for admission can be submitted at any time after the petition has been filed and can even be served with the summons and petition for dissolution of marriage. The best practice, in terms of timing, is to wait until your spouse files an answer contesting any claim in your petition. Using the claims that your spouse has denied in their response to your petition, you will see where the disputes lie and will be able to design a Request for Admission that proves the facts necessary for your case.
How to use the admission applications
First, your application can only contain a total of 30 applications, including all subparts, unless you ask the court for permission to submit more. Take a look at the paragraphs in your Petition for Dissolution of Marriage and see which ones your spouse denied. Focus on the facts that will prove the claims in your divorce petition. If you have documents but don’t know how to “authenticate” them and turn them into evidence, a Request to Admit that Documents are Authentic can help you if your spouse admits to being authentic or does not respond to your request. You must attach copies of the documents to the application if you want your spouse to admit the authenticity of the documents.
The fact or authenticity of a document contained in your application will be “admitted” unless your spouse provides a written response denying the fact or authenticity or files an objection within 30 days of notification of the request. Of course, you will need to add the shipping time if you mail the applications.
Respond to an application for admission
If you are answering an application for admission, be very careful! First, be sure to mark your calendar and submit your responses on time. If your response is not submitted on time, you will “admit” the facts in the Request. Second, if a fact is not true, you must deny it or tell the court in detail why you cannot honestly admit or deny the fact. Third, if one part of the request is true and another is not, you must separate your response and specify which part is true and which part is not. Finally, if the request asks for information that you do not have, you should do a “reasonable inquiry” and try to find the information. If you make a reasonable inquiry and are still unable to obtain the information, you must submit a response stating that you made the inquiry and are not yet aware of the fact. Note that if you deny a fact and the other party later proves the fact to be true, you may be charged for the expense of proving that fact.
A timely Request for Admissions can help you prove your case and take it to trial or settlement. Consider using these applications in your Florida divorce case.