Thursday Thirteen.

Subject: draft Separation Agreement, or Why they call her The Barracuda.
TO: Marie

FROM: The Barracuda


13 things I've noticed with your draft agreement.

1. The incomes in paragraphs 1.7 and 1.8 do not match the T4s that are in the disclosure package. Your 2008 T4 shows income of $9000 less than the disclosure statement. SU's income is $4000 higher than stated.

2. There is no child support being paid under the agreement. Given that Rebel is living with you and going to school part-time, and has had health issues, I believe a court would order SU to pay child support for her. The Child Support Guideline amount for one child and his income would be $750 per month.

3.Given the communication problems that have occurred in the past, I wonder if the system for reconciling expenses described in paragraph 6.3 will work for you.

4. It would be preferable to have the issue of Rebel's expenses resolved before the agreement is signed.

5.There is no provision for an annual exchange of income information and review or adjustment of child support – there generally is such a provision in separation agreements.

6.Child support ends at age 22 under paragraph 8.1 – and Rebel is already 21. Given her health issues, there is no question in my mind that she would qualify for support for a longer period of time.

7.Paragraph 9.4 again requires you and SU to agree in the future about Rebel's medication costs. What happens if you do not agree? If would be preferable to state that you are going to share the costs equally or in accordance with some sort of formula if Rebel does not have her own medical coverage at that time.

8. The SU's shark has written and said that SU would like to amend paragraph 12.6 so that he moves out of the house by July 31, 2009. I would have preferred the agreement to provide that he moves out before you pay him the equalization payment. I gather the issue is that SU needs time to find another house. However, once the agreement is signed, he knows the funds are going to be available and he can start looking for a house right away. He does not need the funds in hand to start looking. If you were both selling the house and moving to another house, you would not wait to close the sale and have the funds before you started looking for a house to purchase.

9. In his letter, SU's Shark also makes the point that by using a retirement age of 65 to value both of your pensions, you have realized an advantage. I have calculated it to be about $8,000. If you had used earlier retirement dates to value both of your pensions, the equalization payment would have been about $8,000 more. You might consider this as an offset to SU's obligation to pay child support for Rebel – but if that is the case it only offsets about 10 months of child support.

10. In his letter SU's Shark asks that the joint loan described in paragraph 20.1 be paid within a defined time frame or alternatively, suggests that if you pay SU $3,000 he will assume the loan. It would be preferable for you to pay the $6,000 on the joint loan and pay SU $3,000 less on the equalization payment and be done with it.

11. I will get my assistant to scan and e-mail the Shark's letter to you.

12. Please review the above and

13. How about we chat by phone before you arrange a session to review these points with your mediator.