This straightforward separation agreement comprehensively covers all the areas you need to consider if you and your husband, wife or partner have decided to go your own separate ways. By agreeing now how you will divide your property and personal possessions, cash and savings in joint bank accounts and other assets, you will have more certainty about the future and be able to move on faster in your own life. The document is suitable if you are married or in a civil partnership (perhaps in anticipation of divorce or dissolution at some point in the future), and also if you have been living together unmarried and have decided to separate. As well as covering the division of jointly owned property, personal possessions, cash and investments, you can record your agreement in relation to periodic payments during separation, living arrangements and care of children.
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When a relationship ends and partners go their own ways, there can be a great deal of uncertainty as to who will pay previously joint bills, how possessions and assets will be split, and who will look after the children.
For married couples, an agreement like this one (sometimes called a deed of separation) provides certainty as to how each person will live while a divorce is being settled.
It is also suitable for:
This document provides both parties with a degree of protection and certainty in what would otherwise be a very uncertain time.
You should note that no separation agreement is binding in law in the same way that a commercial contract would be. A judge still has the authority to change any of the arrangements, whether your agreement is based on our template or is written for you by your solicitor. However, if fair to both sides, it is unlikely that a judge would vary this agreement when making a court order. We explain more about the current legal status of agreements further down this page.
There are a number of reasons to use a written deed of separation:
Even if you break up amicably, your life changes enormously. You can gain some certainty - or at least reduce uncertainty - by sorting out who owns what and what each side owes the other or has continuing responsibility for.
Recording what you agree in writing creates evidence of what you intended to happen when you split up. Once he or she has signed a formal agreement, it is more difficult for your partner to argue that he or she did not agree to something.
Solicitors can be good negotiators and can offer good advice on entitlements, but there is nothing in this type of document that requires legal knowledge or a solicitor. This separation agreement achieves much the same as a solicitor would do for you after a few meetings.
Unless you want a solicitor for another reason (such as legal advice), you can save time and money by completing this separation agreement template yourself instead of asking him or her to do it for you at a high hourly cost.
If you can demonstrate that the agreement has worked well for a period of time, a judge is very likely to let it form the basis of a consent agreement in divorce proceedings (or when dissolving a civil partnership).
Court proceedings while getting divorced inevitably become acrimonious. There is a much greater chance of keeping your future relationship friendly (and agreeing a split that suits both parties, keeping joint friends and making access to children easier) if you can work out together the details of the separation before you reach a court.
A deed of separation can make the divorce process easier, faster and less stressful because many of the difficult things have been agreed already.
A separation agreement is not legally binding in the same way as a commercial contract. The Court still has complete discretion to make a consent order in different terms to any previous agreement.
However, when or if you do have to go to court for separation proceedings, it is likely that the judge will make an order (which will be legally binding of course) in the terms of your agreement provided:
The extent to which a judge will stay with the agreement reflects the level of his or her acceptance of the above three points.
If one of you is in breach of the deed of separation and the other goes to court to enforce it, the judge will make an assessment as described above and will enforce the agreement to the extent that he feels is right.
Within any separation agreement, children arrangements have no legal standing at all.
The court will take no account of what you have agreed in terms of child support but will start afresh in considering the interest of each child.
Of course, if a satisfactory child arrangements are already in place (which may include any of child maintenance payments, child custody and visitation schedules) it is likely that the judge will order that the arrangement should remain undisturbed.
So it is always worth making arrangements for your children because it is bound to be in their interests to have a secure and firm framework for their lives.
This straightforward separation contract is easy to complete. You don't need to involve solicitors or go to court.
First, you should discuss at a high level what you both want before starting divorce or dissolution proceedings. You may have already separated from each other. One spouse is likely to have different reasons for wanting a certain split to the other.
Next, you should each draw up a list of assets. This deed of separation provides for detailed disclosure, but we have no way of knowing every category of thing you might own. We suggest that you consider carefully what other assets you might have and make sure they are disclosed and accounted for.
You may need to instruct experts (such as an accountant and/or a surveyor) to value financial and physical joint assets if you can't agree on a fair price yourselves.
Also consider joint debts, such as your mortgage, overdrafts and credit cards.
For more information read our article on what your agreement should include.
You may also want to consider how to deal with the loss of intangible benefits of marriage, such as tax benefits or joint life insurance provided as an employee benefit to one of you.
This template provides for you to set down your exact arrangements for your children. Although not binding on the Court, your written agreement together will reduce the risk of future disagreement, as will all other aspects of your lives. If possible, your arrangements for child support should go further than simply day to day child custody and child maintenance payments. If you can show the court how you and your ex partner will provide for all needs of your children, your arrangements are more likely to be accepted.
The separation agreement is made once it has been signed by both parties. You do not need to involve a solicitor or any third party, nor do you need to register the document anywhere. There are no additional fees to pay.
Solicitors often advise that each party obtains independent legal advice before signing. The reason for this is not that a separation agreement is only legally binding if advice has been given, but rather that legal advice removes the risk that the other of you later claims that he or she was not aware of the implications of the agreement, or was coerced or pressured into signing it.
Our view on whether you need to take legal advice is that it you should decide after weighing up the risks versus the cost. If your separation is amicable (which is likely if you both agree to writing an agreement yourselves), the benefit of legal advice is likely to be reduced. Then you also should consider the value of your property, money and other possessions.
If you are considering writing your agreement yourselves, the difference in cost between a free separation agreement and a paid one is minimal compared to the alternative of having one prepared by a firm of solicitors.
A good solicitor is likely to charge several thousand pounds for advice and preparation of an agreement (or review of a draft prepared by another law firm). Your ex partner is also likely to face similar costs.
A free sample separation agreement can be very useful to help prompt you as to what you need to agree. However, it needs to cover all the points relevant to you.
We regularly review what is available to ensure that our template covers everything all others do.
The separation agreement template includes paragraphs that cover:
A sample of the template and our guidance notes can be seen by clicking on the picture of the document at the top of this page.
We are happy to answer any questions you have. Arrange for us to call you.
