Nowadays, married couples who wish to separate will often opt for a friendly and voluntary separation agreement to make decisions regarding their children and property, rather than ending up in court proceedings for the division of their rights and assets.
Such agreements should be formalised and their provisions incorporated into a formal separation agreement, which is also called a deed of separation.
However, according to Cyprus law, separation agreements do not constitute a substitute of court divorce orders. They can only be used as supporting evidence during custody procedures, or during matrimonial property and financial arrangements procedures before a court.
There are many issues that need to be considered when creating a separation agreement, and it is important that legal counsel explain:
- all aspects of a separation process;
- the matrimonial and family statutory rights and obligations;
- the way that such rights and obligations are being dealt with through a separation agreement compared to court proceedings; and
- the advantages and disadvantages of such settlement.(1)
For further information on this topic please contact Christos Kastanias, Evripidis Michaelides or Ioanna Martidi at A G Paphitis & Co by telephone (+357 25 73 10 00) or by email ([email protected], [email protected] or [email protected]). The A G Paphitis & Co website can be accessed at www.agplaw.com.
Endnotes
(1) For further details, see "Divorce proceedings in Cyprus" and "Matrimonial property and financial settlements in Cyprus".