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Use of Interrogatories
Written interrogatories are another part of the discovery process, whereby you are asking one party to answer, in writing, specific questions. These questions relate to income, expenses, assets, liabilities, and it forms the basis of knowing what that person really has, so that you can negotiate a proper settlement. For example, you want to know if the other side has an interest in real estate, and if that interest has been acquired, sold, transferred, within the last five or ten years.
You want to make sure that you have information concerning the other side’s income, bank accounts, retirement accounts, and any other form of income, such as rental income, royalties, or profits from any other source. By sending the written interrogatories, you have that other side actually complete a form, which they have to sign and submit back to you. The interrogatories are basically a fact-finding, which allows you to see what the other person has. In effect, you’re showing your cards when you complete interrogatories, as a form of discovery.
Now, if someone has further questions, they can bring it evidence deposition and ask that person, under all penalties of perjury and under oath, the types of questions that they want to ask. So interrogatories, Requests to Produce, and possible depositions form the basis of the discovery process in determining what the other party has in terms of assets and liabilities, so that you can receive a proper negotiated settlement once all that information is obtained and analyzed.