A marriage settlement agreement is a legal agreement between divorced couples that arranges the distribution of assets, child custody, and other legal details. It can be voluntary or mandated by a judge and is enforced by the court. Laws dictate the equitable distribution of assets and child custody. Couples can create their own agreement to minimize costs and protect assets, but both parties must agree to it voluntarily. The agreement must cover all joint property, including debts and custody arrangements.
A marriage settlement agreement is an agreement between a divorced couple in which the spouses arrange the distribution of assets, custody of the child, and other formal legal details related to the end of a marriage. A marriage settlement agreement can be entered into voluntarily by both divorcing parties or can be created by a judge if the two parties disagree. Regardless of whether the parties sign the agreement voluntarily or mandated by the court, martial settlement agreements are enforced by the authority of the court.
When two individuals marry, they become a union in the eyes of the law. The law therefore imposes rules on how assets are distributed in the event of the end of the marriage. While laws differ by state, equitable distribution of assets is generally the goal of all laws relating to marriage and divorce. Child custody is also an important aspect of divorce law, and there are rules and mandates that dictate how custody is determined and what each parent’s rights are.
If two parties divorce, they may choose to create their own settlement within the bounds of the law. For example, a divorced spouse in the United States cannot agree in a divorce decree that her husband is exempt from paying child support, because support is the child’s right. The spouse may, however, agree in a marital settlement agreement that the husband is exempt from alimony.
Divorcing spouses can attempt to create their own marriage settlement agreement to minimize the cost of a divorce that comes with going before a judge to distribute property. Such an agreement also allows the two parties to protect the assets they value most. For the settlement to become legal and court-approved, however, both parties must agree to it voluntarily and without coercion. If the parties disagree, the court will use the legal rules of the jurisdiction to divide the assets and custody of the children.
A marriage settlement agreement must cover the distribution of all joint property. It should determine what is to be done with real estate and all other assets, including retirement accounts and pensions. If there are spousal debts in the name of both spouses, the settlement agreement will normally stipulate how those debts are to be repaid. Finally, the settlement agreement will typically state how you will share custody of one or more children.
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