Hurley v. Hurley

EAGLES, Judge.

The sole issue on appeal is whether oral stipulations in open court as to marital and property rights are valid when entered by the parties’ attorneys without the parties themselves being present. Defendant argues that, unless the parties themselves were present, these oral stipulations are invalid. We agree.

In McIntosh v. McIntosh, 74 N.C. App. 554, 556, 328 S.E.2d 600, 602 (1985), this Court held that

the same scrutiny which is applied to separation agreements must also be applied to stipulations entered into by a husband and a wife regarding the distribution of their marital…