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WK Family Lawyers specialize in drafting agreements to best meet your family’s needs that help minimize future disputes. There are a variety of agreements that you may need in a family law context depending on your situation including:
The negotiation of an Agreement can take place in various stages of a relationship or its breakdown. For example, prenuptial Agreements are entered into before you get married. The goal is to create a contractual commitment between you and your partner on how your property would be divided in the event your marriage does not survive.
In some cases, the issue of spousal support is also addressed in a prenuptial Agreement. While it may feel awkward to engage in negotiations that involve the possibility of a marriage breakdown before rings are exchanged, a “pre-nup” can actually reduce conflict and uncertainty going forward, protecting your financial stability in the future.
Cohabitation Agreements typically are negotiated by people who intend to reside together but do not necessarily intend to marry. Again, the goal is to outline how assets would be divided in the event of a relationship breakdown.
Marriage Agreements are entered into once two people have already gotten married. The goal is to create a contractual framework for how assets would be divided in the event of a marriage breakdown.
If the parties have not entered into any kind of Agreement prior to the breakdown of their marriage or cohabitation relationship, the Agreement that will be negotiated can take the form of Minutes of Settlement or Divorce and Property Contract.
These documents typically refer to a comprehensive contractual finalization of all the outstanding issues resulting from the relationship. In the event that you and your partner are unable to agree on all the outstanding issues, but have some items they would like to cement into an Agreement—that Agreement would only be limited to that particular issue. For example, it could be one of:
The nature of your case will determine how realistic it is to negotiate an “overall” agreement, versus one that only deals with a limited issue. Your lawyer will discuss the various options and goals with you and provide advice on how best to reach your goals.
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It is a fundamental legislative requirement that family law agreements include Certificates of Independent Legal Advice attached, along with other required compliance certificates, depending on the nature of the Agreement.
In general, the courts will not interfere or set aside Agreements entered into between the parties with independent legal advice certificates attached and meet the appropriate procedural requirement. Most Agreements will also include comprehensive financial disclosure clauses and parties should be prepared to comply with the disclosure requirements.
At WK Family Lawyers we ensure client agreements are professional, comprehensive, effective and reliable.
Need help drafting an agreement? Get in touch today →
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