Separation agreements or deeds of separation are used if
you do not wish to issue divorce proceedings immediately, but there
are still issues to be resolved. The separation
agreement sets out the financial arrangements pending a future
divorce. Whilst a deed of separation is not legally binding upon a
court in financial proceedings, providing certain conditions are
met, the existence of the agreement will be one of the factors for
the court to take into account under Section 25 of the Matrimonial
Causes Act 1973 if one party makes an application for ancillary
relief at a later stage.
Separation agreements require there to be full financial
disclosure by both parties to ensure that the agreement is entered
into with full knowledge of the claims that can be made. At the
time a separation agreement is entered into a consent order, to be
dealt with at a later divorce, can also be drafted. A separation
agreement can be a way of dealing with the short term issues
leading up to a divorce, or can also deal with the longer term
arrangements for capital, pension, income and even the arrangements
for children.
