General Release Extension Addendum to Separation Agreement
(NJ)

Summary

Use this template addendum to a New Jersey executive separation agreement to extend the period covered by a general release of claims from the separation agreement's execution date through the end of employment if the separation agreement was executed earlier. This template includes practical guidance, drafting notes, and alternate and optional clauses. This template's language has been customized to comply with New Jersey law. When an executive enters into a separation agreement containing a waiver and general release of claims against the employer, the intention is generally for the waiver to cover all claims relating to or arising out of the employment relationship. In many cases, separation agreements are executed prior to the executive's anticipated termination date. Therefore, since it is unrealistic (and legally problematic) for the executive to agree to release claims for a future period, many employers will require the executive to execute a separate agreement, after the executive's last day of employment, that provides for the waiver and release to cover the period from the time the original separation agreement is signed through the full period of employment. A straightforward way of addressing this issue is to supply an addendum agreement in the form of this template as an exhibit to the separation agreement and to provide in the separation agreement that the separation benefits are also contingent on the executive's execution (and non-revocation) of the addendum, which must be executed only after employment ends. For template separation agreements, see Executive Separation Agreement (Pro-employer) and Executive Separation Agreement (Pro-executive). For additional practical guidance, see Executive Separation Agreement Drafting, Executive Separation Agreement Negotiation (Pro-employer), Executive Separation Agreement Negotiation (Pro-executive), and the Severance Benefits Resource Kit.