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Previous: Preparations

The pre-separation agreement

My wife and I drafted a list of items that we wanted to include in a property settlement and custody agreement. This will not be the official separation agreement (as I learned the hard way) but it is a valuable tool.

Take the agreement that you and your spouse draft to a Notary Public. BOTH of you sign it in front of the Notary.

In our document, we addressed all assets that the two of us had accumulated during the marriage to include savings and checking accounts, the house, any rental properties, all furniture and the cars. We itemized our debts and who would be responsible for paying them. We addressed childcare arrangements and support payments; including child and spousal. I made sure to get entries in the document specifying where our son would live, who was to be the primary custodial parent, a visitation schedule and indicated that I would like to share legal custody of our son. What I didn’t do was take it to a notary in our community (bank or realtors office) and have both of us sign it in front of the notary. This was a huge mistake so I will say it one more time: take the agreement that you and your spouse draft to a Notary Public. BOTH of you sign it in front of the Notary.

The second step of your planning stage is to locate a great lawyer.

Next: Finding a lawyer