Enforcing a separation agreement must be done by making a formal request or motion to the court. If you need to enforce your separation or marital settlement agreement, you will need to demonstrate to court that your spouse has failed to comply with the terms of your agreement. There are many reasons that you may need to ask the court to assist you with enforcing your agreement. The most common reasons include the following:
- Your spouse failed to make child or spousal support payments
- Your spouse failed to maintain health, dental or life insurance policies
- Your spouse has not paid for the children’s college education and expenses
- Your spouse is in default on your mortgage payment
Recognizing Separation Agreements
There are no laws available in certain states for enforcing a separation agreement. Those states include:
- Delaware
- Florida
- Georgia
- Louisiana
- Mississippi
- Pennsylvania
- Texas
You can get temporary court orders when you file for divorce instead. If your spouse fails to abide by the orders, they will be in contempt of the court and face fines and/or jail time depending on the nature of the failure to comply. It will be very difficult to enforce any agreements that are not in writing so in order to protect yourself, you should get court orders for any kind of support or property division that you deem necessary.
Enforcement
Most states have failure to provide child support laws that the court may enforce against you in the following manners:
- Wage Garnishment. The children and family services division of your state can impose a wage garnishment against you for failing to provide child support payments to your spouse.
- Notice of Attachment. The child and family services can also get an order against you providing that the court attach money you owe and pay it directly to them for collection on behalf of your spouse.
- Property lien or encumbrance. Your spouse can file a lien or encumbrance against your property for arrearages.
- Jail time. The court may sentence you to jail time, and order that you pay a fine.
It is serious to violate a court ordered separation or temporary order so you should speak to your attorney if you need to get your order, separation agreement or property settlement division agreement modified.
Hire an Attorney
A family law attorney can help you with court ordered enforcement matters and other divorce issues. The attorney is knowledgeable about the family laws, can explain them to you and answer all your questions. Because separation and settlement agreement matters are so complex, it is recommended that you seek the help of an attorney to represent you regarding those matters as well as other divorce issues.
