Everyone understands that divorce does not portend anything pleasant and simple. This applies to both the emotional state and the financial situation. Fortunately, many couples manage to come to a mutual agreement in resolving many disputes. And this greatly simplifies and cheapens the entire process of divorce. This situation is a dream for all couples who face divorce.
But this does not mean that it will be possible to avoid filling out various forms and court intervention. The point is that, with a mutual agreement regarding all disputes, there must be written confirmation of this. Such a document is a divorce settlement agreement. This agreement requires time, knowledge and care to draft it. In this article, you will learn more about how this agreement should look like and whether it can be drawn up without specialized assistance.
How to Create a Divorce Settlement Agreement?
If you have no understanding of what should be reflected in this type of agreement, then below you will see the main points and conditions without which this agreement has no legal force.
- The main condition for creating such an agreement is the fact that at least three months have passed since the date of the marriage. Only in this case will it be possible to begin the creation of this agreement.
- It is necessary that all questions regarding custody, alimony and so on be resolved. The resolution of these issues should take place within the framework of the law and preferably with the help of lawyers of both parties. At this stage, absolutely all issues should be resolved, and the parties should not have any disputes and claims. If there is a child, then at this stage a schedule of visits should be made.
- All data of the parties must be entered in accordance with current documents. For example, if the spouse plans to change the surname to a maiden in the future, but no legal action has been taken to do this, then the current surname is used. In general, all data in the agreement should correspond to data from relevant documents.
- It is necessary to enter the date of filing for divorce.
- The mutual agreement must reflect that the parties want to be bound by divorce settlement agreements, and then all agreements must be listed.
- Underline all sections of your agreement. It should reflect all the issues that you mutually resolved.
- Describe the agreement regarding legal costs and expenses.
- Leave space for signatures on both sides and space for notarial printing.
- After the document is prepared, it must be read by both parties, as well as a lawyer.
- Both parties must sign an agreement after they are sure of it. That it is relevant and does not contain any mistakes.
- File your agreement with the court. In fact, this paragraph will not require any additional costs to bring it to court. Remember that you will need to have both the original agreement and copies.
Please note that these items are for guidance only. In practice, each point requires special attention and detail. Therefore, the more you have in common with your spouse, the greater the need for legal advice. Even if you have a mutual agreement regarding all the items, but have common property, debts, and children, then, in this case, the help of specialists will be required.
Can You Draw Up Divorce Settlement Agreement Without Help?
In practice, dealing with the creation of such a contract without legal skills is extremely difficult. But it becomes even more difficult when there are joint children. In this case, it will be practically impossible to cope without specialized assistance.
If you have been married for a not a long time and do not have common assets, debts, children, and so on, then you will be able to start independently drawing up such an agreement. Go to your state’s court site and see samples of legal divorce documents. But keep in mind that if you do not have legal knowledge and understanding of the law, you can hang for a long time with this agreement.
Who Can Help with an Agreement?
Of course, the divorce help of a lawyer immediately comes to mind. This is quite logical since such agreements are just the area of family lawyers. But be prepared for the fact that the more you have in common with your spouse, the more voluminous your agreement will be. And this can affect the final cost of a lawyer. Also, drafting such an agreement involves the work of lawyers on both sides. But of course, the cost of a lawyer will cost you less than a saddle proceeding in the contested divorce.
If you do not have the opportunity to pay for a lawyer, you can consider another type of specialized assistance. It’s about the way to file divorce papers online. The services of such companies are much cheaper than the services of lawyers. As for the quality of services, there is no reason to believe that this method of help is worse. You will be promptly provided with a solution to your problem with a description of the detailed do it yourself divorce forms. The only and main condition for this is to choose a reliable company. But today this is not a problem at all, so you can easily find the right company.
The Final Thoughts
The resolution of all disputes outside the court is the dream of almost all couples who get divorced. Despite the fact that the divorce settlement agreement portends a solution to many problems, it is necessary to take the process of its preparation very seriously.
The independent creation of such a document is not always crowned with success. Therefore, if you understand that you may have difficulties, do not neglect the help of specialists. Moreover, today not only lawyers but also online consultants can help with this issue. The second is just a really good opportunity. Why not save money, time and nerves?
Authors Bio
Greg Semmit has years of experience working with different types of legal documents and writing about Family Law for educational purposes. Currently, he is working at OnlineDivorcer company, where he writing blog articles about divorce and divorce cases. In his free time, he likes roaming the streets of New York with his Olympus taking photos of the best spots in the city.