When you make the decision to seek a divorce, you and your spouse can either work together or not. If you can manage to reach an agreement on matters outside of court, then you will have an agreed divorce.
An agreed divorce is also known as an uncontested divorce. It has some specific characteristics as opposed to a contested divorce in which you and your spouse do not agree on all points and require the court to intervene.
No disagreements
The main factor in an agreed divorce is that you and your spouse agree on all points. You must come together on all terms of the matter, including property division, support payments and child custody. There cannot be any issue outstanding.
If you have any problems agreeing on something, then you cannot have an uncontested divorce. You must wrap up all issues prior to seeking the final judgment from the court.
Minimal court invovlement
An agreed divorce also requires minimal court involvement. A judge must sign off on all divorces because marriage is a legal contract. Divorce is the process of ending that contract through legal means, so your final divorce decree must come from a judge. Until the judge signs the paperwork, you and your spouse remain legally in a marriage, even if you have agreed to all the terms of the divorce settlement.
Because agreed divorces typically take less time and involvement from legal professionals, it will usually make the process much cheaper than a contested divorce. In addition, you can usually speed up the process by agreeing on everything outside of the courtroom.
