Divorce Settlement Agreement - South Dakota

South Dakota Stipulation and Settlement Agreement

Use this packet for a stipulated South Dakota divorce involving minor children. Compare every term against the current official UJS-325 form, the current UJS-302 Parenting Guidelines, the filed pleadings, and any temporary orders. The judge may require a hearing and may approve, reject, or require revision of the proposed agreement.

1. Case and Party Information

The Plaintiff confirms that, when the action began, the Plaintiff was a South Dakota resident or was stationed in South Dakota as a member of the armed services. SDCL 25-4-30.

The parties consent to divorce on irreconcilable differences and will execute the current Statement as to Jurisdiction and Grounds. A consent-based irreconcilable-differences divorce may proceed on affidavits without personal appearance if the court permits. SDCL 25-4-17.2 and 25-4-17.3.

☐ At least sixty days will have elapsed after completed service before the divorce is heard or determined. SDCL 25-4-34.

☐ Each party has completed the current financial statement.

☐ Each party has received independent advice or knowingly elected to proceed without separate counsel.

☐ Each party has fully disclosed all property, debts, income, retirement benefits, insurance, tax liabilities, and contingent claims.

2. Court Approval and Effect

The parties submit this Agreement for court approval and incorporation into the Judgment and Decree of Divorce. No private clause selects a different court, limits the circuit court's authority, or privately alters a court-ordered custody or support obligation.

If the court rejects a material term, neither party may obtain a default decree incorporating a different settlement without notice to the other party. The parties will either revise the proposed settlement in writing or present the disputed issue to the court.

Until entry of the decree, the parties remain bound by all existing temporary orders and the automatic restraints contained in the filed summons.

3. Children

The parties are the parents of the following minor children:

Pregnancy status relevant to the action:

☐ No party is pregnant.

☐ [________________________________] is pregnant; expected due date: [__/__/____].

3.1 Custody Selection

Select one proposal for court approval:

☐ Joint legal custody, with primary physical custody to [________________________________].

☐ Joint legal and joint physical custody.

☐ Sole legal and physical custody to [________________________________].

☐ Shared parenting: each child resides at least 180 nights per calendar year in each parent's home, the parents share parenting duties, and child expenses are divided in proportion to income. Any child-support cross credit remains subject to SDCL 25-7-6.27 and court approval.

The parties acknowledge that the court decides custody according to the child's best interests and may not prefer one parent over the other merely because of parental status. SDCL 25-4-45.

3.2 Parenting Schedule

Attach a detailed calendar that states school-week, weekend, summer, holiday, vacation, exchange-time, exchange-location, transportation, telephone/video contact, and school/medical-information terms.

☐ The attached plan follows current UJS-302.

☐ The attached plan varies from UJS-302 as follows and explains why the variation serves each child's needs: [________________________________].

A mutually agreed temporary schedule change does not permanently amend the decree unless the governing order and law permit that result. Retain any written schedule changes.

Neither parent may withhold court-ordered parenting time because support is unpaid, or withhold support because parenting time is denied. A party seeking sanctions or modification must apply to the court.

3.3 Mediation and Safety Screen

If a future custody or parenting-time dispute arises, the parties will follow SDCL 25-4-56. Court-ordered mediation is subject to the statute's domestic-abuse, assault, availability, and appropriateness exceptions.

Safety information requiring separate provisions or court review:

☐ Protection order

☐ Domestic-abuse history

☐ Criminal or child-protection restriction

☐ Supervised exchange or parenting time

☐ Address confidentiality

Details and controlling order: [________________________________]

3.4 Parenting Course

Each party must complete a court-approved parenting course within sixty days after service unless the judge waives or delays participation for good cause or the statute otherwise excuses it. A final decree ordinarily may not be entered until the requirement is satisfied. SDCL 25-4A-32.

4. Relocation

If the existing custody order or enforceable agreement does not expressly govern relocation, the relocating parent must follow SDCL 25-4A-17 to 25-4A-19.

Unless a statutory exception or court-approved shorter period applies, notice must be sent by certified mail or admission of service at least forty-five days before relocation, and proof must be filed with the court. The notice must state the new address and telephone number if known, the purpose of relocation, why it is in the child's best interest, and a proposed parenting plan.

No statutory notice is required for the listed exceptions in SDCL 25-4A-17, including certain moves closer to the other parent, moves within the child's current school district, and specified protection-order or recent domestic-violence circumstances.

The nonrelocating parent may request a hearing within thirty days after notice. If no timely hearing request is made, consent is presumed. SDCL 25-4A-19.

5. Child Support

Attach the current child-support calculation used to reach the proposed amount.

The calculation must use the current SDCL 25-7-6.2 schedule and both parents' net incomes unless another current provision applies.

Adjustments included:

☐ Parenting-time abatement under SDCL 25-7-6.14; ordered nights and amount: [________________________________].

☐ Shared-parenting cross credit under SDCL 25-7-6.27; each parent has at least 180 nights and the required detailed shared-parenting plan.

☐ Deviation under SDCL 25-7-6.10; requested factor and specific findings: [________________________________].

☐ No adjustment.

Support continues until each child reaches eighteen, or nineteen if the child remains a full-time secondary-school student, unless a lawful order provides otherwise. SDCL 25-5-18.1.

An immediate income-withholding order must accompany the support order unless the court finds good cause or approves a written alternative arrangement. SDCL 25-7A-23.

Payment destination and account information must match the current order and current Division of Child Support instructions:

[________________________________]

For an order entered after July 1, 2026, a modification petition filed within three years requires a substantial change in circumstances; after three years, no change showing is required. The petition must use the prescribed process in SDCL 25-7A-22. The parties' private recalculation does not itself modify the order.

6. Medical Support

Medical-insurance provider: [________________________________]

Parent carrying coverage: [________________________________]

Monthly cost attributable to the children: $[________________________________]

The proposed order must provide medical insurance if it is accessible to the child and available to a parent at reasonable cost. Under SDCL 25-7-6.16, reasonable cost generally means the amount attributable to the child is no more than eight percent of that parent's net income after the statutory credit.

Insurance cost allocation:

• Plaintiff: [____]%
• Defendant: [____]%

For a primary-custody arrangement, the parent with primary physical custody is responsible for the first $250 of each child's additional reasonable health-care costs in each calendar year. Uninsured costs above that amount are apportioned in proportion to the parents' support obligations. Shared-parenting arrangements require a tailored allocation. SDCL 25-7-6.16.

The parent carrying insurance shall provide the other parent and required agency with current coverage and card information and shall report changes as required by the order.

7. Property Division

South Dakota permits equitable division of property belonging to either or both spouses, regardless of title. Do not exclude premarital, inherited, or gifted property from disclosure merely by labeling it separate; identify the property, source, value, and requested treatment for court review. SDCL 25-4-44.

Attach complete schedules:

• Schedule A — real property and equity
• Schedule B — vehicles and personal property
• Schedule C — bank, investment, business, and retirement interests
• Schedule D — debts and contingent liabilities
• Schedule E — proposed equalization payment

Each schedule must state the owner, title, account or legal description, valuation date, value, debt, net equity, proposed recipient, and transfer deadline.

After-acquired property term proposed for court approval:

Property acquired after both parties sign this Agreement will belong to the acquiring party, except property affected by an existing court order, undisclosed marital interest, jointly titled asset, or contrary term in the decree.

8. Debts and Creditor Rights

Each allocated debt must identify the creditor, account, balance, responsible party, payment terms, and indemnity obligation.

A divorce agreement does not by itself force a creditor to release a borrower. The responsible party shall seek refinance, assumption, or release by [__/__/____]. Until the creditor confirms release, the original borrower remains exposed to the creditor even if the other party must indemnify that borrower under the decree.

Omitted debt treatment:

[________________________________]

9. Real Property

Property address: [________________________________]

Legal description: [________________________________]

Mortgage and lien balances: $[________________________________]

Select one:

☐ Award to [________________________________], subject to refinance or written release of [________________________________] by [__/__/____]. The other party will sign a counsel-approved deed only after the transfer conditions are satisfied.

☐ List for sale by [__/__/____] with [________________________________]. Pending-sale possession, expenses, listing decisions, minimum acceptable terms, repairs, and net-proceeds percentages are stated in Schedule A.

☐ Other court-approved disposition: [________________________________].

County recording, deed, homestead, lender, tax, and title-insurance requirements must be reviewed separately before signing a deed.

10. Retirement, Investment, Life Insurance, and Military Benefits

List every retirement, pension, annuity, stock-option, deferred-compensation, investment, and life-insurance interest in Schedule C, even if a waiver is proposed.

☐ Each party waives the listed interests after disclosure and independent review.

☐ The listed interests will be divided under attached plan-specific instructions and any required domestic-relations order.

No waiver substitutes for a plan-compliant beneficiary change or required retirement-division order. Obtain specialist review for ERISA, tax, military retired pay, survivor benefits, disability elections, and plan deadlines.

Life-insurance allocation or support-security term:

[________________________________]

11. Alimony

Select one proposal for court approval:

☐ Neither party receives alimony, and each knowingly waives any present claim after financial disclosure and legal review.

☐ [________________________________] pays [________________________________] $[________________________________] per month beginning [__/__/____] for [____] months.

☐ The payment term ends on the earliest of the stated end date, the recipient's remarriage, or either party's death, as selected in the current UJS-325 form.

☐ Other term: [________________________________].

The court may award and later modify support as justice and the parties' circumstances require under SDCL 25-4-41. Do not add automatic cohabitation termination, a liability cap, or a force-majeure suspension unless South Dakota counsel grounds and approves a specific provision.

12. Taxes

The parties will exchange records needed for accurate returns and will not select a filing status, dependency claim, credit, deduction, basis allocation, or property-transfer treatment that conflicts with federal or state tax law.

Tax year covered: [________]

Proposed filing status and allocation of refund or liability: [________________________________]

Proposed child-related tax treatment, subject to tax-law eligibility: [________________________________]

Tax indemnity for a party's separate reporting position: [________________________________]

13. Former Name and Attorney Fees

Former-name restoration requested:

☐ No

☐ Yes — [________________________________] requests restoration to [________________________________] in the decree.

Attorney fees:

☐ Each party pays that party's own fees and costs.

☐ [________________________________] pays $[________________________________] toward the other party's fees by [__/__/____].

☐ The parties submit the issue to the court.

The court may award attorney fees in a divorce when appropriate in the interests of justice. SDCL 15-17-38.

14. Enforcement, Modification, and Additional Documents

Each party shall execute documents reasonably necessary to carry out the decree. Title transfers, retirement orders, and creditor releases must use the separately required instruments.

A party may ask the circuit court to enforce or modify the decree as permitted by law. This Agreement contains no private damages cap, mandatory cure period, force-majeure defense, jury waiver, or private arbitration clause.

Custody, parenting time, child support, and other terms requiring court approval may be changed only through a method the governing order and South Dakota law recognize.

Additional approved terms:

[________________________________]

15. Entire Agreement, Disclosure, and Severability

This Agreement and its attached schedules state the parties' proposed settlement. Each party confirms full disclosure and acknowledges that undisclosed property, debt, fraud, duress, or a term contrary to law may require separate court review.

If the court rejects a provision, the remaining provisions continue only to the extent the court approves them and the parties' material bargain is not defeated.

Any inheritance-right, probate-appointment, beneficiary, or estate-plan waiver must be separately identified and reviewed; do not rely on a generic marital release.

16. Signatures

Each party shall initial every page and sign under penalty of perjury, consistent with current UJS-325. Do not add a notary block unless the current court form, a related transfer instrument, or counsel requires one.

I declare under penalty of perjury under South Dakota law that the foregoing and attached schedules are true and correct, and that I sign voluntarily after reading the entire Agreement.

17. Required Attachments and Filing Check

☐ Current UJS-325 terms reconciled with this packet

☐ Current financial statements

☐ Current child-support calculation

☐ Parenting calendar and current UJS-302 comparison

☐ Parenting-course certificates or waiver/delay request

☐ Property, debt, retirement, insurance, and tax schedules

☐ Deeds, title documents, creditor releases, and retirement orders prepared separately

☐ Statement as to Jurisdiction and Grounds

☐ Proposed Judgment and Decree

☐ SDCL 25-4A-5 sanctions provision attached to the decree as directed by current UJS instructions

Sources and References

• South Dakota UJS Form 325, Stipulation and Settlement Agreement with Minor Children, rev. 05/2026: https://ujs.sd.gov/media/laqpj2r3/ujs-325-stipulation-and-settlement-agreement-with-children_05_2026.pdf
• South Dakota UJS Form 302, Parenting Guidelines effective July 1, 2026: https://ujs.sd.gov/media/whpoobvq/parenting-guidelines-effective-july-1-2026.pdf
• South Dakota Legislature current statutes: https://sdlegislature.gov/Statutes
• South Dakota UJS divorce-with-children forms: https://ujs.sd.gov/self-help/pro-se-forms/divorce-with-children-forms/