Fraud means that one party has deliberately deceived the other party on a significant matter. If, for example, one party to a settlement agreement lied about the amount of his or her assets and the other party later found out that a substantial amount of assets were hidden, that could be a basis for asking the court to vacate the property settlement and order a new distribution of property. Duress occurs when one party is forced into an agreement by extreme, unfair pressure from the other party. In this circumstance, a court also might vacate an agreement and order a different distribution of property. Duress is difficult to prove.
Most judges assume that parties to a divorce agreement are under some degree of stress.
The amount of stress and pressure that a party must have been under before a court will allow the party to back out of a deal is very high. The time period for seeking to modify an agreement or order on the basis of fraud or duress usually is longer than the time period for asking for reconsideration because of the court's mistake of facts or law. The time period varies from state to state, but a period of one year from the time of the order or agreement is common. If a party does not like a trial court's decision, another way to seek relief is to appeal to a higher court. The first appeal usually is to the state's appellate court, although if the case has been decided in a small state or if the case involves an issue of substantial public importance, a direct appeal to the state's supreme court may be possible.