Financial Agreements

A Financial Agreement is an Agreement which is made under certain provisions of the Family Law Act. These types of Agreement differ from Court Orders or Consent Orders, because, if strict requirements are met, they allow parties to agree to arrangements for the division of their property and superannuation, and/or for payment (or excluding payment) of maintenance, that differs from the Family Law Act.

 

Financial Agreements can be made at the beginning of a marriage or de facto relationship, during the relationship, or after separation. Financial Agreements made at the beginning of a relationship are sometimes called "Pre-nuptial" agreements. 

FAQs

Using a Financial Agreement does carry some risk. That is because, unless the formal requirements of Financial Agreement are met, then the Agreement may not end up being binding, or it may be vulnerable to being set aside by a Court at a later date. Great care needs to be taken when preparing, reviewing and signing these types of Agreements.  Both parties need independent advice from a lawyer about certain matters before the Financial Agreement is signed. Parties to a Financial Agreement cannot use the same lawyer.