Do I Need A Separation Agreement Before Divorce in North Carolina

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Hi, my name is Charles Holman. I'm a family law attorney here in Raleigh, North Carolina, and a question that I get asked frequently is, do I need a separation agreement before I get a divorce first? A separation agreement is a contract between spouses to divide property, potentially also to divide custodial time between the parents in terms of custody.

It can deal with spousal support, also known as alimony, and the other rights and obligations arising from your marriage. Do I need a separation agreement before I get divorced? The answer that I give clients is that you need to do something to preserve your ability to resolve property division under the marital laws, and alimony under the marital laws prior to a divorce being granted.

If you don't preserve the right to divide property under equal distribution in alimony, under the spousal support provisions in our statutes, those rights are lost. In order to preserve your rights for alimony and property division under marital property laws, you do need to either reach an agreement in writing or to file those claims with the court and have them pending at the time of the divorce goes through.

Why is it important to have a separation agreement or other agreement for dividing property issues, alimony and custody. Well, one thing beyond the legal reasons would be a very practical consideration. Having a written agreement prevents misunderstandings, helps avoid miscommunication, and clearly defines expectations and rights and responsibilities of each of the parties.

A lot of times I get asked, can I incorporate my separation agreement into a divorce judgment? The answer is yes. However, once that contract becomes incorporated into a court order, it has other effects to that decision as well. It affects how it's enforced. It would now be enforced by contempt. It also affects modification.

If one of the parties requests for the order that was a contract to be modified. They may be able to do so. A separation agreement is a contract has a contract. It cannot be modified unless both parties agree to modify it and then reduce it to writing. So one of the great benefits of a separation agreement is to avoid miscommunications, to avoid misunderstandings, and to clarify the rights and responsibilities of each of the parties to the other.

If you want to learn more about separation agreements in resolving the claims between the parties before your divorce goes through, please call our office or contact us in the online contact form. We look forward to speaking with you.