If you are involved in a family law case, you know there could be hundreds of pages of documents that you will need to produce to your attorney such as monthly bank statements, pay statements and tax returns, credit card statements, leases, proof of car insurance, etc. Here is what you need to know about sending electronic documents and screenshots to your attorney.
With our phones always at the ready, it is easy to just click and take a screenshot of a document your attorney has requested. However, screenshots almost always miss information or result in a blurry picture received. Account numbers, addresses, and often the document itself is unreadable.
Whenever possible, send electronic statements attached to an email or in a dropbox type secure folder. Include all pages of all the documents requested. Include all months of the time period for any monthly statements. So, if your attorney has requested 6 months of credit card statements, include all pages of all monthly statements and have them in order so you can be certain you have included 6 months’ worth of statements as requested.
If you must send a screenshot, follow it up with the full document by email as soon as possible. A one- or two-page screenshot is often insufficient. There are some practices, though, that can help you send better screenshots when absolutely necessary.
- If you are sending a text message or photo it must have a date on it. If it is date stamped by the phone it is more helpful but if you have to write the date on it, that will also work. This may mean you have to print it out, write the date on it, scan it and then send it to your attorney.
- When sending text messages indicate who is communicating. It is not always evident from the face of the text who is sending and who is receiving.
- Do not send a picture of a computer screen. The picture hardly ever comes out clear enough to read.
- Whenever possible do not send screenshots of documents like bank statements, credit card statements, home sale closing documents, etc. that contain a lot of small print. If it cannot be read, it is useless. Also, when filing exhibits with the Court, the process often further blurs documents, making a difficult-to-read document at the attorney’s office impossible to see in the courtroom. The Judge will likely exclude the document from your case at trial because it cannot be read.
- Even if you can see that the screenshot is clean on your phone, once it gets sent through email, downloaded into the attorney’s file, and stamped as an Exhibit, it can become distorted making it dark and blurry. The paralegal at the law firm should notify you when a screenshot is insufficient or unreadable so you can send it again in another format.
Getting your attorney the best possible copies of the documents requested can only help you with your case. Doing it right the first time will also decrease your attorney’s fees and costs. Sending your attorney what they need the first time it is requested, means the matter is handled and repeated requests for documents need not be made.
If you are looking for a trusted and reliable family law attorney in Colorado Springs, Jeanne M. Wilson is the top choice. Not only has she been awarded several honorable awards in the local community over the past several years, but her reputation itself proceeds her. Specializing as a divorce lawyer, Jeanne M. Wilson is well known for her compassionate understanding of the difficult situations her clients face. Contact Jeanne M. Wilson today to see if she is the right fit for your current divorce case. Jeanne is here to help!
