Separation Agreements

A separation agreement or separation deed is a document used by a couple who are separating to determine how any joint assets, and any outstanding responsibilities will be split between them.

Throughout a relationship, couples can accumulate a large amount of joint assets, liabilities and responsibilities. These could be things like a house and mortgage payments, or perhaps smaller household items. Trying to divide these can become problematic and cause animosity between the parties. We will guide you through this, but you will still have your say on what is fair, making the process smoother.

A separation agreement can be used as either an alternative to divorce or for those who are unmarried.  

For married couples this may be because you don’t want to go as far as divorcing but need to divide your assets and responsibilities, or because you can’t start legal proceedings for divorce yet or are not married.

If the separation proceeds to divorce, the agreement can be considered as part of the the court’s decision on the division. Please note however, the agreement isn’t legally binding, so the court does have the discretion to overturn the agreement, but this is unlikely if it is deemed fair and reasonable to all parties involved, including any children, and especially where there has not been any obvious change in the parties circumstances.

An unmarried couple may have equally acquired a large amount of joint assets and responsibilities throughout the course of their relationship. As these will not have been formally joined through marriage, a separation agreement is a formal process to divide these.

It is advised that you seek legal advice and assistance to make ensure the agreement is more likely to be upheld and confirm you have had legal advice about the document.