Key Components of a Marital Settlement Agreement

When you are going through a divorce, the idea of “settling everything in writing” can feel both comforting and frightening at the same time. You might be relieved at the thought of finally having clear terms, but also scared of signing something that could lock you into unfair financial obligations or limit your time with your children. A marital settlement agreement is often the document that shapes your financial security, your parenting schedule and your daily life after the divorce is final, so it makes sense to feel a lot of pressure around getting it right. Many people worry that one wrong sentence could cost them money, contact with their kids or years of stability.

In Florida, most divorces end in some kind of settlement rather than a full trial. A marital settlement agreement, often called an MSA, is the written contract that lays out how you and your spouse agree to divide assets and debts, handle support and arrange parenting when you live in separate households. When it is clear, realistic and properly approved by the court, it can save you months of stress, reduce legal fees and give you more control over the outcome. When it is vague, incomplete or legally defective, it can create new conflicts, require later modification and even cause a judge to reject parts of your agreement. This is why taking the time to understand what an MSA should contain is one of the most important steps in your divorce.

Although every family is unique, most Florida marital settlement agreements cover the same core areas. Judges, mediators and attorneys generally expect to see all of the main topics addressed clearly. When even one major area is left vague, it can create uncertainty, delay the court’s approval or lead to disputes later on.

In a typical Florida divorce, the major sections of a marital settlement agreement include:

·         identification of the parties and basic case information,

·         division of marital assets and debts,

·         arrangements for any real estate,

·         and treatment of retirement accounts or pensions.

The agreement should also cover parenting arrangements if you have minor children, including time-sharing and decision-making, as well as child support and health insurance responsibilities. In addition, it should address whether alimony will be paid, and if so, the type, amount and duration. Finally, many agreements include tax considerations and procedures for resolving future disagreements or seeking modifications when circumstances change.

To make this more concrete, it can help to view key components in a simple table. This type of overview is often easier for people to digest when they are stressed and trying to see the whole picture of their divorce at once.

You can think of the agreement as the blueprint for your post-divorce life. If a topic is not addressed clearly in writing, you may face confusion later when each person remembers the negotiations differently. For example, both spouses might remember saying “we will sell the house someday,” but if the agreement does not state who pays the mortgage in the meantime or how you will decide the sale date, you may end up in new conflict a year or two after the divorce. A strong agreement tries to answer who, what, when and how for the issues that mattered during negotiation.

Division of Assets and Debts in Your Settlement Agreement

One of the most stressful parts of divorce is deciding who gets what and who pays what. Florida is an equitable distribution state, which means that courts start from the idea that marital assets and marital debts should be divided fairly, though not always perfectly fifty-fifty. The law requires judges to classify property as marital or nonmarital, value marital assets and liabilities and then distribute them based on a list of factors, such as the length of the marriage, each spouse’s contributions and each person’s economic circumstances. Your marital settlement agreement should mirror this structure, even if you settle without ever going to trial.

A good agreement will list your major assets and debts and clearly state which spouse will receive or be responsible for each one. This usually includes real estate, bank accounts, investment accounts, retirement accounts, vehicles, personal property, credit cards, personal loans, tax debts and any other significant obligations.

A simple table can help you visualize how property division might be organized in your agreement and can make it easier to check whether anything important has been left out.

Your agreement should also consider what happens when certain assets cannot be divided immediately. For instance, if you own a home together and decide that one spouse will stay there for a period of time, the agreement should specify who pays the mortgage, property taxes and insurance, whether the home will eventually be sold and how the proceeds will be split. If you share a business, your agreement may need to address how it will be valued, whether one spouse will buy out the other and what happens if the business is closed or sold. Thinking through these details in advance can prevent surprise bills, missed payments and disputes about what you “really meant” when the agreement was signed.

Child Custody and Support Provisions

When there are children involved, the parenting and support provisions of your marital settlement agreement are often the most emotional and important parts of the document. Florida no longer uses the traditional terms “custody” and “visitation” in the same way many people remember from older cases. Instead, parents create a parenting plan that describes time-sharing, which is when the child is with each parent, and parental responsibility, which is how major decisions are made. The court evaluates these arrangements based on the best interests of the child, looking at many different factors such as each parent’s involvement, stability and ability to support the child’s relationship with the other parent.

Your marital settlement agreement should either attach a detailed parenting plan or clearly refer to an agreed-upon plan that will be submitted to the court. A comprehensive parenting plan typically covers weekday and weekend schedules, holidays, school breaks and summer time, as well as transportation details and communication rules between parents and with the child. It should also address how major decisions will be made regarding education, health care and activities, indicating whether one parent will have ultimate decision-making authority in certain areas or whether decisions will be shared. Vague language such as “we will work it out as we go” is usually not enough; it often leads to disagreement later and may not satisfy the judge.

Child support is another critical piece of your agreement. Florida uses child support guidelines that consider both parents’ incomes, the number of overnights each parent has with the child, health insurance costs and certain additional expenses like daycare. Your settlement should specify the child support amount, who will pay it, when payments are due, how the money will be sent and how you will handle uncovered medical bills, school fees and extracurricular activities. If you choose to deviate from the guideline amount, you will usually need to explain why this is appropriate, for example because of a child’s special medical needs or a unique time-sharing schedule. Being specific about support helps prevent arguments later about whether payments were made or what is included in the support amount.

Many parents worry that agreeing to certain terms now will trap them if life changes later. Florida law does allow for modification of parenting plans and child support orders when there is a substantial, unanticipated change in circumstances, such as a significant change in income, relocation or a change in a child’s needs. Your marital settlement agreement cannot prevent the court from modifying child-related orders when the law allows it, but clear initial terms make it easier to show what you originally agreed to and whether the situation has changed enough to justify a modification.

Spousal Support (Alimony) Terms

Spousal support, often called alimony, is another area where many people feel anxious. Some fear that they will be ordered to pay too much for too long, while others fear that they will be left with nothing after years of contributing to the marriage. Florida’s alimony laws have changed in recent years, and permanent alimony is no longer available in new cases. Instead, courts may award several types of alimony, each with its own purpose, time limits and rules for modification, such as temporary, bridge-the-gap, rehabilitative and durational alimony. Any alimony you include in your marital settlement agreement should be consistent with these categories and with the factors judges must consider, including the length of the marriage, each spouse’s financial resources and the standard of living during the marriage.

Your agreement should clearly state whether alimony will be paid, who will pay it, what type of alimony it is, how much will be paid and how often payments will be made. It should also specify how long payments will last and under what conditions they will end automatically, such as the death of either party or the remarriage of the receiving spouse. In addition, the agreement should say whether the amount or duration can be modified if there is a substantial change in circumstances, or whether the alimony is non-modifiable. Because alimony can significantly affect both parties’ budgets, leaving the terms vague or incomplete often leads to fear, mistrust and later litigation. A detailed, realistic alimony provision can provide more predictability for everyone involved.

When you are unsure what a fair alimony term looks like in your situation, it can be helpful to look at how Florida law treats marriages of different lengths and how courts balance need and ability to pay. For example, shorter marriages might not justify long-term support, while longer marriages may support a longer period of durational alimony. An attorney who regularly works with Florida alimony cases can explain how recent legal changes affect what is realistic for you and can help structure alimony in your agreement so that it meets legal requirements and is likely to be approved by the court.

Types of Spousal Support to Include

To better understand what your marital settlement agreement might include, it helps to look briefly at the main types of alimony recognized in Florida after the recent reforms. While the exact details depend on the statute and on your judge, a general overview can make the terms you see in your draft agreement much less confusing.

Your agreement does not need to include every type of alimony; many divorces do not involve spousal support at all, especially in short marriages or when both spouses have similar earnings. Others may include a combination, such as a short period of bridge-the-gap alimony followed by rehabilitative alimony tied to a specific training program. The most important point is that the type of support you choose matches your real circumstances and needs, fits within Florida’s legal framework and is described precisely in the written terms so there is no confusion about what was intended.

How to Draft a Marital Settlement Agreement

Drafting a marital settlement agreement is part legal task and part life planning exercise. A helpful starting point is to list all the major topics that must be covered: assets, debts, parenting, child support, alimony and any specific issues unique to your family, such as a family-owned business, professional licenses, special-needs children or immigration considerations. Once you have this list, you can begin discussing options with your spouse, your mediator or your attorney, knowing that you are working toward a complete document rather than reacting issue by issue.

As you draft, each term should be concrete enough that a third person could read it and understand who is supposed to do what and when.

It is also wise to consider some “what if” questions while drafting. For instance, what if one parent wants to move more than fifty miles away? What if a child develops a medical condition that requires expensive ongoing treatment? What if one spouse loses a job or retires earlier than expected? You cannot predict every possibility, and Florida law already allows for modification in some situations, especially for child-related provisions. However, thinking through likely scenarios and addressing them when appropriate can make your marital settlement agreement more resilient and less likely to break down under pressure later.

DIY vs. Attorney-Assisted Agreements

Many people wonder whether they can create a marital settlement agreement entirely on their own by using court forms or online templates. Florida does provide official forms for marital settlement agreements, along with instructions, and these can be a useful starting point, especially in simpler cases. They help you remember the main topics the court expects to see addressed. However, the forms are meant to be filled in with your specific terms; they do not tell you what those terms should be or whether they are wise in your particular situation.

A do-it-yourself approach may seem appealing if you and your spouse agree on most things and want to save money. The risk is that you might overlook important issues, use language that is too vague or accidentally agree to terms that are inconsistent with Florida law or impossible to enforce. Common problem areas in DIY agreements include retirement accounts that require special court orders to divide, tax consequences of selling or transferring property and unclear parenting provisions that lead to arguments about holidays, travel or decision-making. Once the agreement is signed and approved by the court, fixing these problems can be much more complicated and expensive than getting them right the first time.

Working with an attorney does not mean you are headed toward an ugly courtroom battle. In many Florida cases, attorneys spend far more time helping clients negotiate, structure and draft marital settlement agreements than they do arguing at trial. Legal guidance can help you understand your rights, estimate likely court outcomes and structure your agreement so that it is both fair and enforceable. If you prefer to negotiate most of the terms directly with your spouse or through mediation, you can still ask an attorney to review the final draft before you sign it. If you want your agreement to align with current Florida law and to hold up if it is ever challenged, consulting with the Law Office of John P. Sherman before finalizing your marital settlement agreement can give you a clearer picture of both the protections and the risks built into your document.

Making Your Marital Settlement Agreement Legally Binding

For a marital settlement agreement to be more than just a private understanding, it must be properly signed and accepted by the court. In Florida, both spouses usually sign the agreement, and signatures may need to be notarized, especially when the agreement deals with real estate or other significant property interests. The signed document is then filed with the court as part of your divorce case, often before the final hearing in an uncontested divorce or alongside other required documents.

The judge will review the agreement to make sure it is complete, lawful and, when children are involved, consistent with the best interests of the child. In many uncontested cases, the court will incorporate the marital settlement agreement into the final judgment, which makes its terms enforceable as court orders. If the judge has concerns, such as child support being far below guideline amounts without a clear explanation, or one spouse appearing to give up almost everything without legal advice, the court may ask questions, require changes or decline to approve certain provisions. This step is to ensure that the final orders meet basic legal standards.

Once your agreement is incorporated into the final judgment, failing to follow its terms can have serious consequences. The other party can file a motion asking the court to enforce the agreement or hold you in contempt, and the judge may order compliance, award attorney’s fees or impose other remedies. This is why it is so important that your marital settlement agreement be realistic and workable for you, not just on the day you sign it but in the months and years afterward. If your life circumstances later change significantly, you may be able to seek a modification of certain provisions, particularly those involving child support, time-sharing or modifiable alimony. However, you will still start from the written terms you originally agreed to, which is another reason to take your time and be thorough now.

Common Mistakes to Avoid in Settlement Agreements

Because marital settlement agreements touch so many parts of your life, there are many ways things can go wrong. Some mistakes are technical, while others come from emotional pressure, fear or exhaustion. Knowing the most common pitfalls can help you pause, ask questions and protect yourself before you sign.

A frequent mistake is failing to identify and divide all marital assets and debts. If one spouse forgets, or “forgets,” to list a retirement account, stock options or a significant debt, the agreement may not address who is responsible for it. This can lead to post-divorce litigation to uncover hidden property or to argue about unexpected bills. Another common problem is relying on vague language for complex issues, such as simply stating that “we will refinance later” without a deadline or saying that parents will “share expenses” without specifying percentages, limits or payment methods. Vague terms are difficult to enforce and invite argument about what was really promised.

To see these mistakes more clearly, it helps to list them in a simple way:

●     Not listing all marital assets and debts, including retirement accounts and tax obligations.

●     Using vague wording for big issues like refinancing, selling property or paying expenses.

●     Agreeing to unrealistic financial obligations or parenting schedules because you feel guilty or exhausted.

●     Assuming you can easily change everything later, even though property division is usually final.

Emotional pressure can push people into very lopsided agreements. Some spouses agree to terms that are far more favorable to the other person because they feel responsible for the end of the marriage, want to avoid conflict or are simply desperate to finish the process. While generosity is not illegal, an extremely unbalanced agreement can raise concerns in court, especially when the disadvantaged spouse had no legal advice. In addition, agreeing to obligations you realistically cannot meet or to parenting schedules that do not fit your work or your child’s needs can set you up for failure and more legal fights later.

Finally, many people overlook how difficult it can be to change certain terms after the divorce is final. While Florida allows modification of child-related orders and some types of alimony when circumstances change substantially, property divisions are usually final and cannot be reopened just because someone regrets the deal. Once a home is sold and proceeds are divided or certain accounts are transferred, you generally cannot undo those decisions. Making sure you fully understand your property division and support obligations before finalizing your marital settlement agreement can save you from years of frustration and expense. If you want experienced guidance to avoid these traps and build a settlement that truly reflects your priorities, the Law Office of John P. Sherman can help you review proposed terms, identify weak spots and negotiate adjustments that better protect your future.