Preparing for a Prenuptial Agreement

 

Q: What Do I Need To Prepare For A Prenuptial Agreement?

 A: There are many more reasons for a prenuptial agreement, including:

• Preserving assets for beneficiaries and children from a previous marriage;

• Ensuring individual assets (including businesses) remain separate property after marriage;

• Avoiding a long, drawn-out process in the case of a divorce; and

• Establishing procedures to address changes in financial circumstances during your marriage.

 

The bottom line is a prenuptial agreement helps ensure you make decisions about distribution and division of property. A postnuptial agreement operates the same way, but is created during your marriage. Keep in mind, though, even the most carefully drafted agreement doesn't guarantee you won't go through litigation during a divorce. However, it may expedite the process. Also, prenuptial agreements can get challenged in court and determined invalid or unenforceable. To limit the probability of that happening to you, work with an attorney experienced in drafting marital contracts and ...

• Get representation from a different attorney than your spouse. That way it's clear you both voluntarily agreed to the arrangement and fully understood what it meant.

• Sign your agreement well before your wedding. If the agreement is signed just prior to the big day, your spouse can later claim he or she was pressured into it at the last minute.

• Fully and completely disclose all your assets (and make sure your spouse does the same). If your agreement is ever challenged, one factor the court considers is whether the parties fully and completely disclosed all of their financial assets and liabilities.

• Make sure your agreement is fair and not one-sided.

 

If you're going through a divorce and a prenuptial agreement is involved, check with an attorney to see if the agreement should be challenged. In some cases, you can work out a better settlement than what was original detailed in the prenuptial agreement. If the agreement is found to be invalid by the court, you may be entitled to more than what was included in the agreement.