Why does the Judge scrutinize the agreement?

Judges want to make certain the agreement is not the result of overreaching, fraud, or duress and is not a one sided contract that says "here are my terms, take it or leave it." Since a separation agreement can contain issues of child support and child custody, the court is required to peruse and uphold what is best for the child(ren).

The judge will do whatever he or she can in order to have the separation agreement mutually fair for both spouses. When there are children involved you will find that the judge will pay extra attention to issues like, custody, visitation and child support, because the children can be very vulnerable during separation and/or divorce.