What options do we have to formalise our agreement? скачать в хорошем качестве

What options do we have to formalise our agreement?

What are the options to formalise agreements you reach about the care arrangements for your children or the division of your property after you separate? There's a couple of different ways that we can do this. Parenting Plan We can formalise the agreement for children in a parenting plan. That's a document that everybody agrees on. You know what's going to happen with the living arrangements and decision making, all of those things, and everybody signs off on it. It's not registered with the court, and it's not legally binding. But sometimes, even if it's not legally binding, it's the right document, for example when your children are little and their needs are going to change. They are going to be different from when they're six months old to when they're six years old. We all know that children's needs are evolving all the time, so parenting plans are a good way to put down on paper what everybody agrees to, and how they're going to care for the child. A parenting plan can be revisited every year or every couple of years. So that's one option. Parenting Orders The other option is for parenting orders that relate to children, which are 'Consent Orders'. So, it's an application that you file with the Court, and it sets out the Orders that you would like the court to make. Now the wording is going to be different to the parenting plan, because a parenting plan can be pretty informal, but the wording for Orders have to be quite precise. So those precise Orders will be put into an Application for Consent Orders. A lot of information that needs to be filed with that. And then the Court can have a look at it and see if they are happy to make the Orders sought by both parents/carers in agreement. Property Orders Property Orders can also be made by way of 'Consent Orders'. So again, the same, you fill out the forms and get it all put together with very precise words, and you ask the court to make the orders that you're seeking. Those orders can reflect the agreement that you've reached relating to your property, to businesses, and to your superannuation, trusts, things like that. Binding Financial Agreement The other option for financial agreements is what we call a Binding Financial Agreement. Now these are under a different part of the Family Law Act, and they are a document that I generally don't recommend for young families. The people that benefit from these the most are people in second marriages or third marriages and they have they've got assets accumulated in their lifetime. They want to protect their assets so that they can leave things to their children and grandchildren. It is a very, very precise document. It requires disclosure, a list of assets, a list of liabilities, and then a requirement for each of the parties entering into it to have had legal advice. It's very strict area of law. Why formalise? Most people will use Consent Orders because for property, it's the option that gives them the benefit of certainty and stability. If you just go, "Oh, we don't need orders. We can do this ourselves, and I'll just buy you out, and Bob's your uncle". Well... Firstly, what will happen is that if I buy you out, and I don't have a binding financial agreement or some Orders stamped by the court, I'm going to have to pay stamp duty on the share that I buy from you. So that's one thing. Secondly, it's a verbal agreement which means it is not legally binding. You can't enforce it. You can't run to the court and say, "Oh, Kelly said she was going to give me $100,000 every year for the next 10 years, but she hasn't." The court can't help you, because it's got nothing to enforce. Deed Under the Succession Act The other document that people quite often have at the end of a separation when they're thinking forward and wanting to ensure that their property, if they die, isn't subject to a claim under the succession act, they will enter into a Deed under the Succession Act. That the name of that Act is different in various states, but here in New South Wales, it's called the Succession Act. It's a deed or an agreement where you and your ex agree that you've had your property settlement, and if either of you die, you won't make a claim against their Estate. It gets registered and approved by the Supreme Court. So that way you're really taking every step you can to protect your financial position after you separate. To Conclude So that's it, parenting plan, consent orders for parenting and property, or a binding financial agreement for property. And icing on the cake, to make sure all of the property stays within where you want it to go, is a succession deed act. A succession act deed. How about that? Anyway? Have a good day. If you would like assistance to formalise your agreement, we are happy to assist! Give us a ring on 1300 444 LAW or book an appointment via our website.