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Modification of mediation agreement out of court

Good morning. I've read conflicting information about whether my ex-husband and I can change our divorce and and visitation agreement for our kids by using divorce mediation. We used divorce mediation over a year ago for out original divorce and now my ex would like to change our visitation schedule and I am willing to talk about it. I read in one place that in Massachusetts you cannot alter the separation agreement without court involvement and on another site that you can and that because our mediation agreement contains a clause that allows it, we can make changes. What is the answer? Thanks

Changing terms of separation agreement

Let me see if I can clear this up.  With one exception discussed below, divorced couples, regardless of whether they participated in divorce mediation or not, can make post-divorce changes to their separation agreement without court involvement.   So, for example, you and your ex can agree to a new visitation schedule, with or without the help of a mediator, reduce the agreement to a writing that is signed by both of you, get it notarized, and file it with the court that issued the original order.  Very simple.

However, Massachusetts case law prohibits parents from lowering child support payments without the permission of the court that issued the original order.  See the above link for more information on this.  But even with child support, former spouses can avoid an adversarial process by using mediation (after some significant change in the payer's financial circumstances, for example) to come to some agreement on a new level of support.  Then, both parties can file a joint petition for modification to gain court approval.  Hope that helps.

 

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