Newly weds these days are more inclined to sign a prenuptial agreement before tying the knot. As men and women are more focused on work and advancing in the work place they are putting marriage off.
They are getting married later and later in life. With a great career tends to come assets. It is only natural that they would then want to protect those assets. No one wants to lose something they have worked hard to achieve. With a prenuptial agreement you can save your self from that.
Unsure if you need a prenup? Well let us explore it a little more and find what they can and cannot protect.
What a Prenuptial Agreement Can Protect
When it comes to property a prenup is great. If you or your partner owned a house or more properties before getting married, the prenuptial agreement will state who owns what and who is ultimately responsible for paying for all costs associated and the maintenance of that property or properties.
Seems simple. As the owner of any property your prenup will protect you whenever you decide to sell your property. You own it so you can sell it but in the agreement it may state that your spouse has the right to live there as long as they want or until it is sold.
A prenuptial agreement can be fantastic but also very tricky. In any agreement it may be stated how any children in marriage will be raised, such as where they will go to school, where they will live, with who. It can also be stated that if one spouse admits to cheating that they will have to make a cash payment to the others bank account.
As mentioned before entering into a prenuptial agreement can be fantastic for a couple that want to protect their assets in the case of divorce but it can also make day to day living very difficult. If certain rules have been placed on the marriage it may be very difficult to stick to them.
What a Prenuptial Agreement Cannot Protect
Having a prenup will not protect a couple in cases of violating public policy or criminal law.
Depending on where you live certain agreements in a prenup may not be upheld in court. Spousal support may have been waived during the signing of the prenuptial agreement but the court may ignore this. Different states or provinces have differing rules.
Child support cannot be outlined or determined in the prenuptial agreement because it is up to the court to follow the legal guidelines in the state or province.
Failure to disclose information is generally a really bad idea in court. To properly rule on the enforce-ability of a prenup the court needs to know certain things. In the interest of fairness and disclosure, parties must disclose all owned property and financial obligations. Failing to do so could result in that property not being protected under the agreement.
So Do I Need a Prenup?
There is really no right answer here. Couples that get married tend to love each other so much that they often do not think that a divorce will ever happen to them. But that is just not the case.
Many marriages end in divorce, some are amicable and others are incredibly messy and stressful. It may be far simpler to sign a prenuptial agreement to protect both people in case of divorce. It may never happen but it is naïve to think that it couldn’t.
People divorce for all kinds of reasons. So taking the necessary steps before getting married will save months, maybe years of heartache and undue stress.
Tarrant Legal has expert lawyers that know everything about prenups and can advise you on what you need and how to do it.
Every case is different so we like to take the time to learn as much as possible to better understand our clients and to understand their needs. You are in safe hands with our team.
Get in contact today and book a free consultation and protect yourself.