New Jersey Legal Separation Agreement
New Jersey does not use the term legal separation; it offers a divorce from bed and board (limited divorce) by mutual consent, convertible to an absolute divorce. Attorney review available.
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Introduction
New Jersey does not use the term legal separation. The closest court remedy is a divorce from bed and board, also called a limited divorce, under N.J.S.A. 2A:34-3, which lets a married couple separate through the court while staying legally married so that neither spouse may remarry. A divorce from bed and board differs from an absolute divorce in a key way: it is granted only when both parties petition or join in requesting it, so it requires mutual consent, while an absolute divorce can be granted even if one spouse objects. It may be adjudged for the same causes as a divorce from the bonds of matrimony, and in the proceeding the court can address the same financial issues, including equitable distribution, alimony, and custody and support of children. What it does not do is dissolve the marriage: the couple remains married, which is why some choose it to keep a spouse on health insurance, to reach the ten-year mark for certain military and Social Security spousal benefits, for religious reasons, or as a step short of ending the marriage. A divorce from bed and board does not close off a later divorce: either party may afterward apply to convert it to a divorce from the bonds of matrimony, and that application is granted as a matter of right (N.J.S.A. 2A:34-3), so the conversion to an absolute divorce is automatic on request. New Jersey divides marital property by equitable distribution rather than by a community-property split; because those division terms are the same ones used to end a marriage, they belong in a New Jersey Marital Settlement Agreement, and if you decide to end the marriage the pleading that starts it is a New Jersey Divorce Petition. DocDraft builds your New Jersey separation agreement from your facts, with attorney review available before you sign.
Key Things to Know
- 1
New Jersey does not use the term legal separation. Its closest court remedy is a divorce from bed and board, a limited divorce, under N.J.S.A. 2A:34-3, which lets a couple separate through the court while staying legally married; neither spouse may remarry.
- 2
A New Jersey divorce from bed and board is granted only when both parties petition or join in requesting it, so it requires mutual consent, unlike an absolute divorce, which can be granted over one spouse's objection (N.J.S.A. 2A:34-3).
- 3
A divorce from bed and board may be adjudged for the same causes as an absolute divorce, and in the proceeding the court can address equitable distribution, alimony, and custody and support of children.
- 4
A New Jersey divorce from bed and board does not dissolve the marriage. Either party may afterward apply to convert it to a divorce from the bonds of matrimony, and that application is granted as a matter of right (N.J.S.A. 2A:34-3).
- 5
Couples choose it to keep a spouse on health insurance, to reach the ten-year mark for certain military and Social Security spousal benefits, for religious reasons, or as a step short of ending the marriage. Confirm insurance effects with the plan.
- 6
A private separation agreement is another New Jersey option: a contract in which the spouses settle property, debts, support, and parenting while staying married, without a court judgment.
- 7
New Jersey divides marital property by equitable distribution rather than by a community-property split. Because that division is the same one used to end a marriage, those terms belong in a New Jersey marital settlement agreement, not in the separation itself.
Key decisions before you file
Before you file a Legal Separation Agreement in New Jersey, a few decisions shape the document: which option to choose and what each one means. The Legal Separation Agreement guide walks through them.
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New Jersey Requirements for Legal Separation Agreement
No Legal Separation by That Name
New Jersey does not use the term legal separation and enters no legal-separation decree. The closest court remedy is a divorce from bed and board (a limited divorce), and a couple may also sign a private separation agreement. The couple stays legally married.
Divorce From Bed and Board
A divorce from bed and board is New Jersey's limited divorce under N.J.S.A. 2A:34-3. In it the court can address equitable distribution, alimony, and custody and support of children, but it does not dissolve the marriage and neither spouse may remarry.
Requires Mutual Consent
A divorce from bed and board is granted only when both parties petition or join in requesting such relief, so it requires mutual consent (N.J.S.A. 2A:34-3). An absolute divorce, by contrast, can be granted over one spouse's objection.
Same Causes as an Absolute Divorce
A divorce from bed and board may be adjudged for the same causes as a divorce from the bonds of matrimony (N.J.S.A. 2A:34-3). The grounds are the same; the difference is that a limited divorce does not end the marriage.
Marriage Not Dissolved
A divorce from bed and board and a private separation agreement do not end the marriage. Neither spouse may remarry, and the marriage ends only through an absolute divorce.
Conversion as a Matter of Right
Either party may afterward apply to convert a divorce from bed and board to a divorce from the bonds of matrimony, and that application is granted as a matter of right (N.J.S.A. 2A:34-3). The earlier limited divorce does not block the conversion.
Equitable Distribution
New Jersey divides marital property by equitable distribution rather than by a community-property split. Because this is the same division used to end a marriage, set it out in a New Jersey marital settlement agreement rather than in the separation itself.
Separation Versus Marital Settlement Agreement
A New Jersey divorce from bed and board sets the couple's court posture; a marital settlement agreement is the contract that divides property and sets alimony and is used to resolve both a separation and a divorce. Keep the money and parenting terms in the marital settlement agreement.