Frequently asked questions

FAQ

What sort of PDFs are supported?

We support bank statements, interim statements, and transaction listings issued in PDF by all Australian banks, lenders, and credit card providers, as well as a bunch of international institutions too.

We also support most transaction listings created by printing an online banking website to PDF.

Finally, scanned PDFs (and photographs and screenshots) are also supported, at an additional cost of $3.99. The quality of the source document can affect the quality of the resulting report — read more about how we handle scanned PDFs here.

Can I test my PDFs before making payment?

Absolutely. Before we ask for payment we give you the ability to upload all your bank statements and ensure they are recognised by our system. (You will need to create an account and log in, so that we can properly secure the uploaded files and only show them to you.)

If the statements aren’t recognised for whatever reason, simply don’t make payment, and there will be no hard feelings 😊

What will I actually get at the end of the process?

When you use Ruffle Report, and provide bank data, you will receive an interactive report dashboard that summarises the disclosure you have received, and that allows you to explore a variety of financial red flags that may indicate foul play, or may support legal arguments to strengthen your case.

You can filter the data by date ranges, for example to quickly compare the situation before and after separation, for example, or a relocation or discovery of infidelity.

Finally, you can download the report contents and save it wherever you wish, and export all the transactions to Excel.

Can I run a Ruffle Report on the other side’s financial disclosure?

You absolutely can, and that’s what most Ruffle Reports are used for.

Can I run a Ruffle Report on my client’s financial disclosure?

Of course you can. Before sending the financial disclosure to the other side, it can be an excellent idea to first run a Ruffle Report. This will help identify any potential “skeletons in the closet” that might otherwise come back to haunt you later.

Having full knowledge of potential weaknesses in your client’s legal position means that strategic action can be taken earlier, to ensure the best outcome for your client.

What about password-protected PDFs?

The PDF statements supplied by some banks are password-protected. Lawyers will often make an unprotected copy of the statements to disclose to the other side. One way of doing this is to open the protected PDF, enter the password, and then print to PDF.

In many cases, these unprotected PDFs will be recognised as originals, although we will advise you that they are not true originals.

In some cases, the unprotected PDF may be sufficiently different to the original that the document will need to be processed as if it were a scanned PDF, at a cost of $3.99 per page.

How should I request disclosure in the right format?

To help ensure you receive disclosure in an appropriate format, consider adding the following to your precedent request, right after you particularise which bank statements you require:

So that the authenticity and integrity of these bank statements can be verified, we ask that your client provide the statements in electronic PDF format, downloaded directly from the banks’ websites, without alteration or modification of any kind.

Practitioners are reminded of their obligations under the FCFCOA (Family Law) Rules 2021, which state that “Parties must bear in mind that an object of the pre-action procedures is to control costs and, if possible, resolve the dispute quickly” (Schedule 1, Part 1, Section 4(9)). Providing disclosure in an obstructionist manner does not assist in this purpose.

Do you have something for clients to read, to explain the process?

Of course! We have a standard one-pager which describes the service, how it will be useful, how much it costs, and how the client’s data is secured.

Click here to download the one page explainer PDF

Can you complete my IT department’s due diligence questionnaire?

We already have.

How do you protect my client’s personal information?

Privacy and data security are incredibly important to us. Of course, everyone says that, so what are we actually doing about it?

  • We store the minimum amount of information required to complete yourclient’s Ruffle Report. Essentially, that means your email address, your list of accounts, and your transactions. We don’t ask for your client’s name, address, phone number, driver’s licence, passport, mother’s maiden name, or anything like that.
  • We use a trusted third party (CreditSense) to connect to your client’s bank accounts and process your client’s PDFs. CreditSense have been honing their security in this regard for years.
  • We destroy your client’s data once you have finished the process. Similar to a shop that empties its cash register each night, this helps deter would-be attackers, and ensure that if a successful attack occurs, we don't have years of historical data sitting around to be stolen.

Who else sees my client’s data?

We only share your client’s data with:

  • You
  • Your client or colleagues (if you decide to share it with them — which is not compulsory)
  • Our support team, but only if you ask for tech support and we cannot solve the issue without looking at your client’s data

Is my login safe?

We send you a login link by email every time you log in, so you don’t have to remember (and forget) another password. And just like a bank, we log you out automatically after a period of inactivity. Yes, that can be annoying at times, but the security benefits are worth it!

One thing you do need to ensure is that you register using an email address that only you have access to.

© 2024 The Ruffle Technology Company Pty Ltd

Ruffle Report is a web application that helps family law participants and their lawyers perform forensic analysis of financial disclosure, for use in proceedings under the Family Law Act 1975 in the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (FCFCOA).