How to Arrange your Divorce Property Settlement without Spending a Fortune in Legal Fees

What is a Financial Divorce Agreement?

A Financial Agreement allows you to decide how to divide joint financial resources between yourselves. Often referred to as a property settlement divorce or divorce property settlement agreement, a financial agreement helps break the monetary ties that bind you to your former partner. This important step ensures clarity and fairness, preventing future disputes and uncertainties.

Property Settlement Agreements eliminate the need for the couple to enter court proceedings, reducing the risk of extended litigation, cutting your legal costs (and stress) and providing certainty of outcome.

A Financial Agreement covers issues such as:

• the transfer of the family home;
• how to deal with investment properties;
• who gets what in relation to cars, furniture, shares and savings;
• superannuation; and
• whether maintenance would be paid.

Issues that deal with child support and visiting rights are dealt with in other documents such as a Child Support Agreement and Parenting Plan.

Sitting down with your ex now to work out a ‘property settlement agreement’ and what your agreement needs to achieve, before consulting your legal adviser, will save you considerable time, money and anxiety. Taking the time to work things out between you will also minimise the risk of having a lawyer draft a one-sided agreement that fails to reflect the needs of either party.

The ONE factor that affects how much your property settlement costs

In any property settlement, the one factor that will affect your costs more than any other, is whether you and your ex-spouse or de facto partner can reach agreement yourselves, before you engage legal representation.

As long as you have reached genuine agreement, you can engage a lawyer to prepare the documentation for you, or you can draft your own Financial Agreement.

But which option should you choose for your financial settlement?

If you choose to have a law firm draft the document from scratch, you can expect legal fees to be in the order of $3000-5000 for just one party, if you have a straightforward matter . If you wish to split superannuation or your finances are more complicated than most, you can expect the cost to rise dramatically. And that is before the other party receives any legal advice.

If you choose to draft your own agreement, and you choose to use one of RP Emery’s financial agreement kits and Legal Review Service, you can expect to pay just $3,397 for both parties (in most cases) to obtain an agreement that is binding and enforceable in the Family Court.

About RP Emery’s Financial Agreement Kits and the Peaceful Path to Settlement

Over the last 15 years, RP Emery have helped thousands of couples just like you prepare their own Binding Financial Agreement.

Preparing the document yourself  using one of our financial agreement kit (only $147) and then using RP Emery’s unique Legal Review Service will save your time, reduce your stress, and allow to keep the thousands of dollars you would have spent on legal fees for yourselves.

Get Started with a Divorce Agreement Kit- Just $49

Why is the Peaceful Path to Settlement system so much cheaper than the alternatives?

The simple answer is you will do some of the work yourself. The lawyers will only do what they need to do, and that is, provide proper legal advice in accordance with the requirements of the Family Law Act 1975.

Think about it. If you engage a law firm to draft your document, first you will need a face to face meeting to flesh out the details. Your lawyer will ask:

• what do you own?
• what do you owe?
• when did you divorce? and;
• who gets what?

Your lawyer will require your:

• bank details;
• account balances;
• superannuation details;
• where you live;
• if you own investment property, what is the address?
• do you have a mortgage? and so forth.

You will need to provide all this information, and you may need a number of face to face meetings.

Remember every time you meet with a lawyer, their meter is running.

You may need to take time off work, and travel to meet your lawyer, and who knows how many follow up emails or meetings you will need until you get the final draft.

It’s expensive, it’s time-consuming, it’s stressful and it’s real pain in the neck.

Don’t be fooled into thinking your agreement is somehow different to everyone else and will be drafted from scratch. Law firms have always used template agreements, and your lawyer will start by populating one with the information you provide.

So if you have all the information you need about the details of the property division and you know how to use Microsoft word, why would you pay a lawyer upwards of $300 per hour to populate a form?

Doesn’t it make more sense to do this part yourself?

The reality is, most couples have relatively simple arrangement and preparing your divorce settlement agreement is much easier than you might think, especially if you have someone to help you along the way.

All you need is

• a suitable Australian Binding Financial Agreement;
• someone to lead you personally through the process; and
• two lawyers who can provide your legal advice.

Fortunately, RP Emery realised reducing the lawyers time on your matter will result in substantial savings, without effecting the quality of the final document.

We have negotiated a reduced fixed rate for our customers with several Nationally accredited lawyers who specialise in financial agreements, who can provide Legal advice over the phone and via email. No travelling, no time off work and professionals who have completed thousands of agreements probably very similar to yours.

How the Process works

This section explains how our process works in detail.

The Easier First Step

Start With the Financial Agreement Kit including BFA Planner – Just $49

Forget legal jargon and blank legal forms. Getting started here means answering a set of plain-English questions about your situation – in your own words, at your own pace.

We’ll ask about what you own and owe: property, super, savings, debts, vehicles, etc, and how you wish to divide it.

Alongside the BFA Planner, you’ll also have the plain-English User’s Guide, a step-by-step Process Guide, and a bonus Will Kit, because separation is exactly the time your Will needs updating too.

The completed questionnaire is yours to keep and serves as a properly organised record of your property and finances, which is what a thorough property settlement needs.

It’s a Word document you can save, step away from, and come back to. Nothing is sent anywhere until you choose to send it – so there’s no pressure to have every answer ready before you start.

When you do send your completed Planner to us for review, that’s what gets things moving. Your answers are used to build your draft Financial Agreement, drawing on the framework we’ve refined across thousands of BFAs since 2009 – reviewed personally by our team.

Then our team will be in touch. If your draft fits within the Legal Review Service, we’ll confirm it and talk you through what happens next; if it isn’t quite there yet, we’ll explain why and what still needs sorting.

If it’s ready to proceed, a payment of $990 gets your matter formally underway. From there, we work through the finer detail together by phone and email – the points people often miss – getting your agreement ready for the next stage.

Once that’s done, the final balance payment of $2,260 unlocks the next stage: two independent lawyers – one for each of you. They provide the advice and certification the Family Law Act requires. Your lawyer will finalise your agreement and provide the final version ready for signing.

Get Started – Just $49

“I found it exceptional in every way. I was kept up to date with the process and any queries were answered within the day. It made the separation process much easier and I would highly recommend this service to any friends in the future. Thank you for everything.” — Kim Watt

A Look at What We Actually Ask

No dense legal clauses to wade through here – just plain questions about your situation, with enough detail to meet the law’s disclosure requirements and no more. Below is a look at a few sample questions from the questionnaire, so you can see how the Planner is set out.

It doesn’t matter what kind of financial agreement you need or which state you live in – the planner forms for foundation of the correct financial agreement for your situation.

How to Obtain the Required Legal Advice at a Fixed Price

Important note: Under the Family Law Act a financial agreement is binding only when it is signed by both parties and contains a certificate confirming that each party has obtained independent legal advice prior to signing the agreement.

Our financial agreement review service is available to assist you in completing the legal advice component of your FA at a LOW FIXED RATE of just $3,250 for both parties.

Just like thousands of other delighted customers, you too can minimise the financial and emotional cost of separation by using our questionnaire-led process and Legal Review Service.

How It Works and What It Costs

A simple process – a few honest questions, a confirmed understanding, a draft preview so you know what’s coming, then the independent legal advice that makes it binding.

Fixed Pricing — No Nasty Surprises

Step	What’s Included	Price (inc GST)
1. BFA Planner	Download, complete, and submit the BFA Planner – categories and approximate values only, no exact account numbers needed. Yours to keep regardless of what happens next.	$49
2. Submit & Confirm	We check we’ve understood your situation and intentions before anything proceeds – catching any gaps early, before you commit to the next stage.	Complimentary
3. Fine-Tune	Your matter formally begins. We work through the finer detail together by phone and email – the points people often miss – getting your agreement ready for final Legal Review.	$990
4. Legal Review	Final payment unlocks the Legal Advice stage where both parties receive  legal advice and certification from two independent lawyers, one for each of you. This is required to make your financial agreement binding.	$2,260
5. Sign	Once your lawyers are satisfied, you’ll receive the finalised version to sign.	—
Total Cost for Two People		$3,299

Applies to most customers — complex structures (e.g. multiple companies, family trusts) may involve additional fees, confirmed with you before proceeding.

 

Satisfaction Guaranteed – Our Promise to You

Satisfaction Guaranteed – Our Promise to You

If for any reason you are not completely satisfied with your purchase or our service, please phone our office on 1800 608 088 within seven (7) days of purchase and we will rectify the situation, issue a refund, or offer a credit towards future purchases.

Why Use RP Emery?

You can start now

From the comfort of your own home. Buy the document, download it and get started.

It’s easy to use.

The divorce agreement template is written in plain English. Just fill in the blanks. And there is an Exclusive Member’s area packed with tips and guides to help.

Our experts are here to help

Don’t get stuck – just call 1800 608 088 and talk to a real person, here in Australia, happy and able to answer every question you have. To make it “stress-less” for you.

Thousands of successful financial separations

We have supported many thousands of Australian couples through a successful and pain-free financial separation. We are here to help and we know what we are doing.

“A fraction of the cost”

Go direct to lawyers and you can easily spend $8-10,000 to get a Binding Financial Agreement. Our combined service is less than half that price – for the same outcome.

Fixed price

A fixed price gives you certainty without the worries of the ticking $$$ clock at most law firms.

Stood the Test of Time

RP Emery has been operating for over 35 years, during which we have helped tens of thousands of Australians with their legal documents. Our glowing testimonials and continuous stream of referrals are a testament to the quality of our service.

Get Started with a Divorce Agreement Kit- Just $49