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When couples divorce, legal agreements must be reached regarding the division of money and property as well as child custody and visitation rights, if children are involved. While mediated discussions are usually held between the divorcing parties to reach these agreements before they're finalized, changes in the circumstances of one or both of the divorcing parties may necessitate amendments to the original divorce agreement. The process for amending a divorce agreement varies, depending on which aspect of the agreement is in question and how long it's been since the agreement was reached.
A divorce dissolves a marriage. To get a divorce, it is necessary to file the appropriate paperwork with the court clerk. These documents are usually informally referred to as "divorce papers." Divorce papers include a petition, which is the document that sets out the petitioner's desire to dissolve the marriage, a summons, which notifies the respondent of the action and "calls" the respondent to court, and, if applicable, a property settlement agreement. Ask the court clerk for the appropriate paperwork. After filing the paperwork, sometimes a new discovery may make it necessary to amend or change something in the petition.
Although the specific procedures for amending divorce papers vary by jurisdiction, in all states, you will need to have your modified paperwork approved by the court that is handling your divorce. To save time and money, try to resolve any disputes on the documents' contents with your spouse before submitting your proposed amendments to the court.
One spouse creates a divorce petition, more commonly known as divorce papers, who then serves it to the other spouse. The petition is required to start the divorce process. Although the process and documents vary among different states, the petition is generally the same. It will contain areas to indicate property and assets to be divided and child custody terms. These are the areas that typically need to be changed if your spouse's employment changes or if she moves.
