TMZ has reported that Nicholas Sparks did not suddenly decide to end his
twenty-five year marriage. In fact, TMZ has reported that Nicholas Sparks
and his wife, Catherine, filed a “post-marital agreement” in
August. TMZ reported that the “post-marital agreement” worked
out a property settlement between the parties.
As a result of the breakdown of a marriage a number of legal issues arise
that may be addressed through the negotiation of a
Separation Agreement. If both parties are able to co-operate with one another and exchange
financial disclosure, the parties can negotiate toward mutually-acceptable settlement terms.
A Separation Agreement may address legal issues including, but not limited
to, custody, access, property division, life insurance, child support and
spousal support.
In the case of Nicholas Sparks and his wife Catherine, it appears that
the parties agreed to mutually acceptable terms with respect to
property division. In Ontario, the division of property after the breakdown of a marriage
is resolved through an “equalization payment”. As such, former
spouses do not actually decide “who gets the house and who gets the
car”, but rather the value of the property owned by the spouses is
equalized by a money payment from one spouse to the other.
It is important to note that the issue of spousal support will be of great
significance. As TMZ reported, Nicholas Sparks and Catherine decided to
separate after a 25 year marriage. Given Nicholas Sparks wealth, it may
be safe to presume that he will be the payor of spousal support. In Ontario, the
Spousal Support Advisory Guidelines provide that spousal support may be of an indefinite duration if the marriage
between the parties was twenty (20) years or more in duration. This is
often referred to as the “Rule of 20” in Ontario. However, the parties may have agreed to release each
other of any claim for spousal support in exchange for a greater settlement
with respect to the issue of property division.
The Separation Agreement between Nicholas Sparks and Catherine demonstrates
one of the advantages of negotiating an Agreement in comparison to litigating.
That is, the negotiation of a Separation Agreement will remain private,
while any court proceedings are open to the public.