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When your ex starts ignoring the terms of your marital settlement agreement, it can feel frustrating and overwhelming. But you do not have to handle it alone. In this guide, we will walk you through six steps to take when your ex violates the agreement, helping you protect your rights and keep the peace. Whether it is missed child support payments or other breaches, these steps will help you take control and ensure the agreement is enforced.
A marital settlement agreement (MSA) is a legally binding document that outlines the terms and conditions agreed upon by both you and your spouse during your divorce. This agreement usually covers property division, spousal support, child custody, parenting time, and any other matters relevant to the dissolution of your marriage.
We cannot overstate the importance of a marital settlement agreement. An MSA serves as a roadmap for both you and your ex to follow post-divorce, since it provides clear guidelines on responsibilities and expectations. This helps minimize potential conflicts and misunderstandings, as the agreement spells out what each party is entitled to and what is expected of them.
By mutually agreeing to these terms, you and your spouse can avoid prolonged court battles and protect your individual rights and interests. Once you have both signed your MSA and a judge approves it, the MSA becomes part of your final divorce decree, making it enforceable by law.
Having an MSA in place can offer you a sense of closure and security, as it legally binds both you and your ex to follow the agreed-upon terms, with legal recourse available if one party fails to comply. However, one party can violate a marital settlement agreement, despite agreeing to it.
For example:
-Failing to pay child support or alimony: This is one of the most frequent violations, when one party stops making the agreed-upon payments for child or spousal support, leaving the other party to deal with financial difficulties.
-Ignoring child custody or parenting time arrangements: An ex-spouse may violate the agreement by not following the established custody schedule, such as refusing to return your child on time, withholding parenting time rights, or making unauthorized changes to the schedule.
-Failing to disclose assets: If one party hides assets or income, especially when it affects alimony or child support calculations, they have violated your agreement’s terms regarding fair division of property or financial transparency.
-Refusing to transfer property or assets: A violation can occur if one ex-spouse does not transfer assets or property as outlined in your MSA, such as not signing over the deed to a house or refusing to divide retirement accounts.
-Interfering with relocation or travel: An ex-spouse may breach the agreement by moving out of state with the child without the other parent’s consent or court approval, or by preventing the other parent from traveling with the child, despite the terms allowing it.
An MSA that you and your spouse signed while going through a split becomes legally binding. That is why if you or your ex break one or more of the terms, you can experience varied and potentially serious consequences.
For example:
1. You might be held in contempt of court. As we have noted, since an MSA is a court-approved legal document, if one of the parties violates the terms you can be held in contempt. The violator can face penalties like fines, community service, and even jail time if the court considers the breach severe enough.
2. You could face financial penalties. The court can impose financial sanctions on the spouse who violates the MSA. This can include paying the other party’s legal fees, making up for missed child support or alimony payments, or other monetary penalties to rectify the harm caused by the violation.
3. Your agreement might be modified. If one of the parties repeatedly violates the MSA, the court may decide to modify your agreement in favor of the non-violating party – that could mean custody arrangements could change to ensure your child’s best interests or your alimony terms could be altered.
4. You could face enforcement actions. The court can take action to enforce the terms of the MSA you and your spouse signed. This might include garnishing wages for unpaid support, placing liens on property, or ordering the sale of assets to satisfy the obligations outlined in the agreement.
5. You could experience damage to your parental rights. If an MSA violation relates to child custody or parenting time rights, the offending parent could unfortunately face restrictions to their custody or parenting time privileges. If the violations are habitual, the parent could face a loss of custody or a reduction in parenting time, since the court prioritizes your child’s well-being.
After you have gone through the stress of a divorce, the last thing you want to deal with is a breach of your marital settlement agreement. While we hope you do not face this situation, it is always a good idea to be prepared if it happens by understanding six steps you can take.
1. Discuss the issue with your spouse.
It is important to address your concerns directly with your ex-spouse, as they could be testing boundaries or may not realize they are violating the marital settlement agreement. While it is not your responsibility to fix their non-compliance, open communication may help resolve misunderstandings and avoid further disputes. Additionally, showing that you made an effort to address the issue could be useful later.
2. Check in with your family law attorney.
If one spouse is not following the marital settlement agreement, the next steps depend on the specific conduct and timing. If your divorce is not finalized, consult your family law attorney to possibly renegotiate terms before signing. You need to protect yourself, even if it takes more time and money, because once the agreement becomes a court order, it is difficult to change.
In the event that your divorce has been finalized and you have both signed the MSA, your attorney can recommend a next step to try to resolve the issue. If the issue persists and cannot be resolved between you and your spouse, you will know what legal options are available, though it is best to pursue them only after other efforts have failed.
3. Track and document your spouse’s violations.
Most likely, your family law attorney will advise you to document every violation carefully to establish a pattern of behavior. This can include taking photos, saving text and social media screenshots, sending emails to record concerns, and keeping all relevant records. That way, you will have evidence in case you need to involve the courts.
4. Learn if seeking a modification makes sense.
If your divorce is final, your attorney may suggest filing for a modification of the agreement in the case of repeat violations. To obtain a court-ordered change, you typically need to demonstrate changed circumstances. Evidence that the other party isn’t complying with the agreement could persuade the court and help protect you from future breaches. (That is where gathering evidence will come in handy.)
5. File a motion for contempt.
Again, you will discuss with your attorney the best course of action to take if your ex violates your agreement in more serious matters. When you file a motion for contempt, you are asking the court to recognize that your ex-spouse has willfully disobeyed your marital settlement agreement, which is a court order.
To file this motion, you will need to provide evidence that clearly shows the violation and that your ex had the ability to comply with the agreement, but chose not to do so. This can include things like missed payments, communication records, or any other documentation showing non-compliance.
If a court finds your ex in contempt, they can face penalties that include fines, payment of your legal fees, wage garnishment, suspension of specific privileges (like a driver’s license), or even jail time for more serious or repeat violations. These penalties are meant to compel the party in breach of the MSA to comply with the terms of the agreement and to uphold the court’s authority. A contempt ruling is a strong legal tool that can send a clear message that violating your MSA will not be tolerated.
6. File a motion for enforcement.
This is another legal option available to you if your ex violates the MSA. Unlike a contempt motion, which focuses on punishing non-compliance, a motion for enforcement is meant to compel the party in violation to fulfill their obligations as outlined in the agreement. When you file this motion, you are asking the court to take specific actions to enforce the MSA’s terms.
In an enforcement hearing, you will present evidence demonstrating that your ex violated your agreement. If the court agrees, it can issue orders to rectify the situation, such as ordering the payment of overdue support, transferring property, or adjusting custody schedules. The court may also impose additional measures to compel future compliance, such as setting up automatic wage garnishment for support payments or requiring regular reporting to the court. The goal of enforcement actions is to restore the status quo and ensure that both parties adhere to your legally binding marital settlement agreement.
Going through a divorce and creating a marital settlement agreement can be challenging. Trust Lawrence Law’s experienced attorneys to guide you every step of the way, ensuring you achieve the peace of mind you deserve. If you’re encountering an issue with your ex violating the terms of your agreement, contact our attorneys for the backup you need to protect your rights.
Contact us today at (908) 645-1000 to schedule your initial consultation or complete our confidential contact form. With offices conveniently located in Watchung and Red Bank, NJ, Lawrence Law is ready to serve families across New Jersey.
The articles on this blog are for informative purposes only and are no substitute for legal advice or an attorney-client relationship. If you are seeking legal advice, please contact our law firm directly.
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