Puja Sachdev | September 23, 2024 | Family Law
A comprehensive marital settlement agreement (MSA) should set the terms of your divorce, including any alimony, child custody, and child support arrangements. If you can reach an MSA (and not all couples can), you will enjoy numerous advantages over litigation. Following is a description of five of the most advantageous aspects of a marital settlement agreement.
- Low-Stress
An amicable resolution of your differences is particularly important if you have minor children since you may need to continue cooperating for many years to come. After intense courtroom litigation, however, you might be left with a lingering sense of animosity toward your ex-spouse, and they might feel the same way about you.
The very process of negotiating an MSA encourages cooperation for more than the competitive litigation process does. Even if one-on-one negotiations stall, you can always agree to bring in a third-party mediator. Mediators are trained to seek harmonious solutions that both sides of a disagreement can live with. They also know how to cool tempers when negotiations get heated.
- Flexible
With a little ingenuity, you can create flexible terms for your MSA, including:
- A lump-sum alimony payment,
- Deferred payments,
- Conditional alimony payments tied to certain events, such as a child’s graduation from high school or college,
- Unique parenting structures, such as rotating holidays or complex arrangements,
- Property division based on sentimental value, and
- Educational trust funds.
There are many other possible options if you apply your imagination to the facts of your case. Mediation would be a particularly good place to explore these options because mediators often help generate creative solutions to problems. Perhaps the best aspect of an MSA is that you can structure it to allow modification of the agreement without going to court.
- Private
Court proceedings are usually open to the public, and litigation is part of the public record. Meanwhile, divorce often forces spouses to reveal intimate details of their financial situation and personal life. Settlement, by contrast, is private. The details of a settlement agreement and how that agreement was reached are not open to the public.
Regardless of whether you are wealthy or well-known, If you have significant privacy concerns, negotiating an MSA is certainly the way to go.
- Economical
Resolving your case out of court is usually cheaper in terms of both time and money. Litigation takes time because it involves conflict, and conflict takes time to resolve. The old saying ‘time is money’ is never more appropriate than in this circumstance. Family lawyers typically charge by the hour, especially if they anticipate contentious litigation.
Enough conflict can increase the price of divorce so much that when it comes time to distribute property, there might be very little left to divide. Negotiating an MSA won’t be free in terms of time or money, but it will probably be cheaper than litigation. Just about the only circumstance under which litigation would be cheaper would be when divorcing spouses drive such a hard bargain that an agreement is impossible.
- Enforceable
A California MSA is a legally binding contract once both parties sign it and the judge accepts it. That means that if your ex-spouse refuses to comply with its terms, you don’t have to go back to family court in most cases. Instead, you can sue your ex for breach of contract. Typically (but not always), enforcement is relatively straightforward.
Contact A San Diego Divorce Law Attorney
If you are seeking a divorce, or if you anticipate that your spouse might seek a divorce in the near future, retaining a competent San Diego family lawyer is a must. A skilled family lawyer can help you reach an effective MSA or fight it out in court if necessary.
The assistance of a competent San Diego family law attorney can help your divorce proceed more smoothly. At most, your attorney might be able to help you avoid major problems. Contact San Diego Divorce Lawyers, APC, today to schedule a free consultation and discuss your case.
Contact a local divorce lawyer at (619) 724-4160, explain your circumstances, and try to schedule an initial consultation with the lawyer as soon as possible.
San Diego Divorce Lawyers, APC
2851 Camino del Rio S #430
San Diego, CA 92108
(619) 866-3756
