How family lawyers request a credit card statement from clients
By Arthur Teboul, DokuTrak · Published
In short
Ask for monthly statements for every credit card the client holds or is an authorized user on, for the period your disclosure rules cover, including the statement showing the balance around the date of separation. In a divorce, card balances are debts to allocate, and the charges document living expenses for the financial affidavit and support calculations.
Why family lawyers need a credit card statement
Your state’s financial disclosure form usually asks for debts as well as assets, and credit card balances are often the largest unsecured debts in a marriage. The balance near the date of separation helps sort out who owes what, and the charges month after month give a documented picture of the household’s expenses, which the affidavit and the support analysis rely on.
What exactly to ask for
Complete monthly statements, every page, for each card in the client’s name, each joint card, and each card where the client is an authorized user. Cover the period your court’s rules or the discovery request require, and include the statement closing nearest the date of separation. PDFs from the card issuer’s website, not a screenshot of the balance in the app.
What to check when it arrives
- The statement around the date of separation is present, with its closing balance.
- Joint cards and authorized-user cards are identified, since responsibility for the balance may differ.
- Large charges or cash advances after the separation are noted for a conversation with the client.
Email to send your client
Replace the bracketed parts. The same text fits in the message of a DokuTrak request (up to 1,000 characters).
Subject: Your credit card statements
Hi [Client name],
I also need monthly statements for each credit card you use, including joint cards and any card where you are an authorized user. Please cover the last twelve months, with the statement from the month you separated.
You can download the PDF statements from each card issuer’s website, usually under Statements. A screenshot of the balance in the app is not enough, as I need every page.
Could you send them by [date]? If a card is in your spouse’s name only, just tell me and I will note it.
Thank you, [Your name]
Ask once. DokuTrak does the chasing.
- Your client uploads from one link, with no account and no password.
- Reminders go out on a schedule, by default 2, 5, 10 and 14 days after the request, until the file arrives.
- With AI review switched on in your workspace (it is off by default), each upload gets a first pass that flags a file that is not a credit card statement or an unreadable or blurry scan. It says so when it is not sure.
- You accept every file or mark it for re-upload, and your client gets the note by email. The AI never accepts a file.