Marriage and Family Law

Prepare a Parenting Agreement for a same sex couple who want to have a child with this downloadable template form.

• Scope of Agreement. The contract sets out the parties' intentions as to how the child will be raised.
• Decision Making. The partners will share equally in the responsibilities of rearing, educating, loving and disciplining the child, and will jointly make decisions regarding the child's health and welfare.
• Separation. If the partners separate at some point, they will each do their best to ensure that the child maintains a close relationship with both parents and that they continue to share in the costs and responsibilities of the child's upbringing, regardless of which parent the child lives with.
• This is a generic legal form which is not specific to any country, state, province or region.
• This Parenting Agreement for Same Sex Couple template is in MS Word format and is fully editable to meet your needs.

Planning to get married soon? You and your future spouse can use this short-form template to write a Prenuptial Agreement for the USA.

• The short-form Prenuptial Agreement sets out the rights of each party with respect to their own individual personal property and that of their spouse, if the marriage breaks down.
• Assets owned by each party prior to the marriage will remain the sole property of that party.
• All income and profits derived from the individual's separate property shall remain that individual's property.
• Both parties have disclosed their net worth.
• The parties waive their rights in the other party's separate property, including any rights granted by law.
• Available in MS Word format and fully editable to fit your specific circumstances.
• Intended to be used only in the United States.

Protect your occupation of your home if you separate from your partner by registering a Declaration of Family Residence.

• If you are married or in a civil union and you have registered a Declaration of Family Residence, your occupation of your home is protected if you separate. Your former spouse will not be able to sell, lease or mortgage your home.
• The same rule applies if you rent your home and have added a statement to your lease declaring that it is your family residence. In this case, your former spouse will not be able to transfer the lease without your written consent.
• The family residence forms part of the family patrimony of a couple who are married or in a civil union, regardless of which spouse actually owns it.
• The form is a free Microsoft Word download. English language version.
• Intended to be used only in the Province of Quebec, Canada.

After 2 years of living together, common law couples in Saskatchewan have the same rights and obligations under the law as married couples. You can change that by signing a Cohabitation Agreement.

• A cohabitation agreement gives you a chance to establish who owns what property. For instance, each partner would continue to own the assets that they owned when they entered the relationship.
• Any property jointly acquired by the parties would be divided equally between them if the relationship ends, or would be sold and the sale proceeds split evenly.
• The Agreement contains a provision that each partner is responsible for his or her own debts and financial obligations.
• The partners will be jointly responsible for raising, supporting and caring for any children they have together.
• Before signing the Agreement, you and your partner must get independent legal advice from a lawyer. A Certificate of Independent Legal Advice for each party is included as part of the document, and must be signed by the lawyer.
• This legal form is available as a downloadable MS Word template.
• Intended for use only in the Province of Saskatchewan, Canada.

Have you and your spouse decided to separate? Put the terms of the separation in writing with this Separation Agreement for Canada.

• The Agreement provides for custody of and access to the children of the marriage (if any), and the amount of spousal support and child maintenance to be paid by one spouse to the other (if any).
• Joint debts will be paid by both parties, and debts owed by one of the individuals will be paid solely by the person owing the debt.
• The parties will agree on how property jointly owned by both spouses will be divided. Property owned by only one person will belong to that person.
• There is a section dealing with the disposition of the matrimonial home, which must be agreed on by both parties.
• Each spouse must list his or her assets and liabilities.
• The form includes an Affidavit of Execution form (to be sworn by a witness), a Certificate of Independent Legal Advice or an Acknowledgement and Waiver of Independent Legal Advice (whichever is appropriate).
• You will need to see a lawyer for independent legal advice before signing this form.

Ending a marriage is never easy, but putting everything in writing can smooth out some of the wrinkles. Download this Canada Separation Agreement to get you started.

Deciding to end a marriage can lead to major legal battles if the terms are not put in writing and agreed to by both parties. Make sure you're both clear on the details by signing this Separation Agreement for U.S. residents.

• The Agreement covers a number of issues including:
  • custody of the children pending issuance of the divorce decree
  • responsibility of each parent for child support and payment of health benefits
  • division of jointly owned property between the spouses
  • responsibility for individual debts.
• This legal contract form is available as a downloadable MS Word document which is fully customizable to meet your needs.
• Intended for use only in the United States.

The end of a relationship is always traumatic. Make the process a little easier by putting the terms of your settlement into this Canada Separation Agreement for common law partners (same sex or opposite sex).

• Arrangements for custody of and access to the couple's children, and amounts of spousal support and child maintenance to be paid (if any).
• Both partners will pay the couple's joint debts, and each partner will pay their own individual debts.
• Terms for dividing property jointly owned by both partners. Each partner will continue to own their respective separate property.
• Terms for disposition of the couple's home, if it is owned by the partners.
• List of each partner's assets and liabilities.
• The form includes an Affidavit of Execution (to be sworn by a witness), a Certificate of Independent Legal Advice or an Acknowledgement and Waiver of Independent Legal Advice (whichever is appropriate).
• You will need to see a lawyer for independent legal advice before signing this form.
• This Separation Agreement (Common Law or Same Sex Couple) is for Canadian residents. Available in MS Word format.

If you and your ex-spouse have agreed on how to deal with issues surrounding the care and well-being of your children, put it all in writing with this U.S. Short Form Custody Agreement.

• The Custody Agreement deals with the following issues:
  • custody of the children,
  • access by the non-resident parent,
  • medical and dental care,
  • respect for the absent parent by the resident parent (e.g. no derogatory remarks, comments, etc).
• Provided in MS Word format and fully editable to fit your circumstances.
• Intended to be used only in the United States.

Prepare a Sperm Donor Agreement and Waiver of Parental Rights with this downloadable template contract.

• Parties. The parties to the Agreement are (i) a woman who wants to conceive a child through artificial insemination, and (ii) a man who has consented to donate sperm for the insemination procedure.
• Parental Rights. The sperm donor agrees that he will have no parental rights to the child, and will not demand custody or visitation rights.
• Child Support. The woman agrees that she gives up all right to any child support (financial, emotional or otherwise) from the donor.
• Paternity Suits. Both parties waive their rights to bring suit against the other to establish paternity of the child.
• identity of Father. The parties also agree that no father will be named on the birth certificate, and that neither of them will reveal the identity of the donor as the natural father.
• Dispute Resolution. The parties agree to refer any disputes to binding arbitration.
• This is a generic legal contract which is not specifically governed by the laws of any country. It is a downloadable MS Word template which can be revised and used as many times as required.

Prepare a Surrogate Parenting Agreement with this template form for USA residents.

• Parties. The parties to the Agreement are the natural father, who will provide the sperm, and a woman who will act as surrogate mother and her spouse or partner.
• Parental Rights. The surrogate and her husband give up all parental or other rights to any child born pursuant to the agreement.
• Medical Tests. The surrogate and her husband will undergo physical, genetic and psychiatric evaluations, and the husband agrees to undergo any required tests to determine paternity of the child.
• Prenatal Preparation. The surrogate will undergo prenatal testing, and agrees not to smoke, drink, or take any prescription or non-prescription medications without the doctor's written instructions.
• Insemination. The surrogate will be artificially inseminated with the natural father's semen and if successful in becoming pregnant, will carry the child to term, barring any complications.
• Compensation. For conceiving and giving birth to the child, the surrogate will be paid compensation for services rendered and expenses incurred, which is not to be considered a fee or as payment in exchange for surrendering the child for adoption.
• Assumption of Risks. The surrogate and her husband assume all risks involved with conception, pregnancy and childbirth, and indemnify the natural father and his wife against any claims, including death, injury and illness.
• Governing Laws. The contract is governed by United States laws.
• Available in MS Word format.