Uncoupling? Learn how to separate with dignity and respect
If you have decided to uncouple from your spouse, and you want to clarify and resolve the legal issues between the two of you, then you are ready to start on the path toward a separation agreement.
Separation Agreements
Making the decision to separate might be one of the most difficult decisions you will ever make.
If you have decided to uncouple, you need a Separation Agreement to resolve all the legal issues between the two of you. A Separation Agreement might be the most important document you sign in your life. When you have a properly drafted and signed Separation Agreement in your hand, you have a final and legally binding resolution of all financial and child related issues between you and your spouse. When you have a Separation Agreement, you are no longer considered to be spouses for any purposes.
How do you reach agreement so that you can get a Separation Agreement?
There are only 4 routes to a Separation Agreement:
- Kitchen Table Agreement where the two of you agree on everything and you just need to make it legal
- Mediation and Arbitration
- Collaborative Practice
- Court
At Resolution Place, we offer all 4 ways to reach your final Separation Agreement.
Starting a lawsuit should only be considered after you have tried all 3 other ways of resolving the dispute. This is because court causes permanent harm to relationships and it is very expensive.
If you are uncoupling, it may seem you face many and complex legal and financial issues. However, there are generally only two legal issues that arise when a couple separates. The non-legal issues are the emotions, and it’s often the emotions that are obscuring the legal issues, making everything look complicated. Strong emotion, such as distrust, often makes easy communication impossible.
The two legal issues that arise when parties are contemplating separation are
What do we do about the children?
How do we divide family assets and debts?
These two legal issues are the same whether you were legally married to your spouse or not. Married or not, you still need to resolve those two legal issues if you are thinking of uncoupling permanently or temporarily from your spouse.
You will notice that neither of the two legal issues facing a separating couple have anything to do with who is at fault, or who is right and who is wrong. Starting on the road to a Separation Agreement requires both parties to put aside blame and to focus on the legal issues.
Some couples might need just a little assistance in helping them reach a Kitchen Table Agreement.
Most couples have experienced a communication breakdown. The question is: How can mutually agreeable terms of a Separation Agreement be reached if there has been a communication breakdown between the spouses due to strong emotions such as mistrust, sadness, anger or fear?
The answer is mediation and arbitration, or collaborative law. Come in to discuss which option best fits your family situation.
At Resolution Place we offer an initial consultation with a lawyer for $300 including tax, and we encourage you to bring your spouse to the initial consultation to set you both on the best path to a final Separation Agreement.
Are you ready to move from blame to resolution?
Contact Us
Contact us to make an appointment for your initial consultation with Susan Kurtz, an experienced lawyer at Resolution Place.