You both need to get independent legal advice (each take it to your own lawyer) and have each lawyer sign off on it for it to be iron clad. Otherwise she can contest it later.
Each lawyer signing it with each of you (*you should end up with 4 copies with 4 signatures, the lawyers keep a copy on file) is good enough, the notary doesn't really mean anything. If she doesn't get independent legal advice, just a notaray won't give you any protection from her trying to reopen it.
That said, if you have an access schedule with the children and abide by it for 6 months, you will be in a status quo situation and it would be very difficult to change the children's schedule, if not impossible. If the children are doing well a court would not change the schedule just because one parent changed their minds. If there is a material change in circumstance, the custody/access can be challenged no matter how iron-clad the agreement is.
If you equalize any property/assets properly, there is nothing to reopen.
Child support should be paid according to tables. If it is not, the agreement can still be reopened later, child support will almost always be set by the courts according to table amounts.
The main tricky thing you want to lock down is spousal support. If your ex (or you) has no possible entitlement then you are good.
Many couples do quite well without lawyers or court orders.
If you each get independent legal advice and the lawyers sign the agreement, then you can have the separation agreement registered with the courts or, more easily, incorporated into the divorced order. Talk to the court clerk or duty counsel about this.
Each lawyer signing it with each of you (*you should end up with 4 copies with 4 signatures, the lawyers keep a copy on file) is good enough, the notary doesn't really mean anything. If she doesn't get independent legal advice, just a notaray won't give you any protection from her trying to reopen it.
That said, if you have an access schedule with the children and abide by it for 6 months, you will be in a status quo situation and it would be very difficult to change the children's schedule, if not impossible. If the children are doing well a court would not change the schedule just because one parent changed their minds. If there is a material change in circumstance, the custody/access can be challenged no matter how iron-clad the agreement is.
If you equalize any property/assets properly, there is nothing to reopen.
Child support should be paid according to tables. If it is not, the agreement can still be reopened later, child support will almost always be set by the courts according to table amounts.
The main tricky thing you want to lock down is spousal support. If your ex (or you) has no possible entitlement then you are good.
Many couples do quite well without lawyers or court orders.
If you each get independent legal advice and the lawyers sign the agreement, then you can have the separation agreement registered with the courts or, more easily, incorporated into the divorced order. Talk to the court clerk or duty counsel about this.
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