What is a Court Order v. an Award?
🔹 What Is a Court Judgment or Court Order?
A Court Judgment (or Court’s Final Judgment) is a legal document signed by a judge that officially ends your marriage. It’s more than just a declaration of divorce — it outlines the key terms of your separation, including:
Spousal support
Child support and Section 7 expenses (extraordinary costs like daycare, tutoring, etc.)
Parenting issues (decision-making responsibilities and parenting time)
Property and debt division
Additional relevant terms based on your specific situation
This document is entered into court and becomes binding and enforceable.
🔹 What Is an Award?
An Award is similar to a court judgment in that it’s a final, binding decision, but it comes from a private process called Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) — like arbitration. When spouses choose to settle their disputes through an arbitrator instead of going to court:
The arbitrator’s decision is called an Award, not a Judgment.
The Award can address parenting issues, child/spousal support, property/debt division, and more.
It may later be converted into a court order if needed for enforcement.
So:
🔸 Court Judgment = Decision from a public court
🔸 Award = Decision from a private ADR process [but still legally binding]
🔹 Minutes of Settlement [MOS] vs Divorce Judgment
Minutes of Settlement is the document that spells out what you and your spouse agreed to — often the result of negotiation or mediation.
In most cases, this agreement is then incorporated into the Divorce Judgment, meaning the terms of the deal become enforceable by the court.
🔹 Why Is the Writing of the Judgment Important?
A poorly written judgment can lead to confusion, disputes, or future litigation. It’s crucial that your documents:
Reflect accurate facts [like asset values or income]
Include all necessary terms
Use clear, enforceable language
✍️ These are usually drafted by family lawyers and experienced mediators and arbitrators so as to avoid costly mistakes.
🔹 Can a Court Order or Judgment Be Changed?
Generally no, unless both parties agree — especially for financial and property matters. However, there are exceptions:
Children-related provisions [parenting and support] can usually be modified as circumstances change.
Spousal support and child support may also be reviewed if there’s a significant change in income or life situation.
Proving fraud or misrepresentation may justify reopening the case, but it’s tough to prove.
Example: In the McCourt divorce, Jamie couldn’t undo a bad deal because she hadn’t done her due diligence. The court ruled “a deal is a deal.” [see below for more details]
🔹 Bottom Line
A Divorce Judgment [court-made] or an Award [ADR-made] both finalize your divorce terms.
You should always double-check or have a lawyer review these before they’re finalized.
While parenting and support terms can evolve, most other parts of your judgment are set in stone once entered in court.
So What’s an Award versus a Court's judgment?
An AWARD is similar to a Court's judgment. An award is a final judgment of sorts but is arrived via an Dispute Resolution Process, where a private Arbitrator is retained, they issue an Award which is akin to a binding Court Judgement. It is termed Award as it is arrived through a privately conducted arbitration process. An Award will deal with issues such as parenting decision-making responsibilities, parenting time, mobility, spousal and child support and Section 7 expenses and the like.
Here’s an example.
The McCourt Divorce
In 2010 Jamie and Frank McCourt, former owners of the Los Angeles Dodgers, were divorced. At the time of the divorce, the Dodgers were in bankruptcy. Jamie received $131 million and several luxury homes in the divorce settlement. Frank McCourt received sole ownership of the Los Angeles Dodgers. Frank later sold the Dodgers for $2 billion. After Frank sold the Dodgers, Jamie took him back to court claiming that he misrepresented the value of the team, and that he shortchanged her by $770 million in their divorce. The trial court ruled against Jamie, and the Appellate Court affirmed that decision. In essence, the court held that Jamie had made a deal. Even though it turned out later that she had made a bad deal, a deal was a deal. Jamie should have investigated how much the Dodgers were worth BEFORE she signed the divorce settlement papers. If she didn’t do her due diligence, that was her problem. She couldn’t go back and ask Frank to pay her more money after their divorce was over. Chances are, neither can you.
Changing “Children” Provisions
Children grow up. Circumstances change. Because of that, you can usually change parenting time schedules and parenting rules as your children grow up. Again, if you and your spouse can agree on those changes, making them in court is easy. If you don’t agree, then you may be in for a fight. But at least, under the right circumstances, the parenting provisions in your divorce judgment can be changed. So can child support (and sometimes even spousal support). If you or your spouse change jobs, or your income increases or decreases in a substantial way, child support (and possibly spousal support) can be changed.