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You’ve worked hard throughout your marriage, and you want to protect what you’ve earned and divide it in a way that’s fair to you. You’re concerned about how the divorce will affect your children, and you want a clear written agreement in place once you’ve talked out all the issues in negotiations. After the hard work of negotiating an alimony scheme that is favorable to you, you want it recorded clearly so there are no surprises or misunderstandings. Your spouse has engaged in some questionable practices, or maybe has agreed to take on a majority of the marital debt, and you want to be shielded from liability in the future.
Keith Family Law has helped hundreds of divorcing New Jersey clients negotiate comprehensive Marital Settlement Agreements that successfully meet their unique needs and challenges. Our family law team helps to provide peace of mind to ensure you’re covered for every possibility, addressing issues that you might not even realize need to be discussed and agreed upon.
A Marital Settlement Agreement (or “MSA”) is a legally binding agreement entered into by a divorcing couple after they agree upon how they will divide their assets and allocate their debts, what will happen with their house, how they will address alimony and child support, what they agree on as to child custody and a parenting plan (visitation), and additional issues such as future tax filings and college contribution for the children.
The Marital Settlement Agreement is a document that governs alimony, child support, child custody, division of property (equitable distribution), and future support for children and spouses in the event of a change of circumstances such as retirement. The Marital Settlement Agreement is legally binding on both spouses and clearly spells out the obligations and responsibilities of each spouse going forward.
A Marital Settlement Agreement governs your post-divorce life, so it is very important that it be carefully negotiated and drafted. It is about protection for you after your divorce, dividing your assets and liabilities, setting custody and parenting time, and setting clear expectations and understandings about financial and custody matters right from the start - ideally in a way that avoids any trouble after the divorce is done.
Some of the key areas that a Marital Settlement Agreement covers include:
The MSA is the legally binding document that governs your post-divorce life, and so it is critical to get your negotiations right and that your terms are accurately drafted into your Marital Settlement Agreement, without any unintended consequences, and in language that is most favorable to you by a skilled divorce attorney.
Jeff serves as a Vice President at a prominent company in New York City, while Susan has been a stay-at-home mom for many years. They own a house in Summit, New Jersey and have two children, Aiden and Zoe.
Jeff and Susan each hired skilled divorce attorneys, knowledgeable in New Jersey family law, to advocate for their interests. The negotiation process was primarily conducted through a series of strategic letters between the attorneys, detailing proposed terms and counter-proposals. This phase was crucial as it allowed each party to clearly articulate their interests and understand the other’s position without direct confrontation.
After many issues were fleshed out, Jeff and Susan held a four-way settlement conference, attended by both parties and their attorneys, to come to final terms.
To head off potential future disputes, Jeff and Susan’s agreement included a clause that they would first bring any non-emergent disagreements to mediation before filing any court motions. This ensures that both parties have a chance to resolve issues amicably with legal support.
After the negotiations were concluded, Jeff and Susan’s divorce attorneys drafted a Marital Settlement Agreement accurately setting forth all of their agreed-upon terms, and other terms that protect them both from future harm and strengthen the enforceability of their agreement. Because the Marital Settlement Agreement is effective on the day that it is signed, and does not expire, it is critically important to have vigorous and attentive legal representation throughout negotiations and especially through the drafting process. Each word of the Marital Settlement Agreement is meaningful and has real consequences, and must be drafted extremely carefully and in your best interests.
Jeff and Susan’s approach, through vigorous attorney-led negotiations and a conclusive four-way settlement conference, exemplifies a powerful and traditional method of divorce negotiation. This method allowed them to thoroughly explore and resolve disputes with clear legal guidance, resulting in a comprehensive Marital Settlement Agreement tailored to their family’s needs.
If you are facing a similar situation, Keith Family Law can provide you with the robust legal support you need to negotiate your divorce with confidence and strategic foresight.
Contact our family law attorneys today to schedule your initial consultation or explore how we can help people just like you in specific family law areas:
