The prenup, its contents, and the importance of this document

Posted in Property Division on October 26, 2017

In our last post, we talked about how prenuptial agreements can greatly affect any divorce, let alone one that involves a massive amount of assets and property. Today, we want to talk about this a little bit more by outlining what you can and can’t include in your prenuptial agreements.

There are a few very important topics that you can include in your prenuptial agreement that will protect you in case of a high asset divorce. A prenup can protect your estate plan, as well as any business you own or any family property that you want to protect from the divorce process. Additionally, your prenuptial agreement will differentiate between what property is deemed “marital property” (shared by the spouses) and “separate property” (exists outside of the marriage for legal purposes).

Your prenuptial agreement can also do two unique things: it can provide for children from a previous relationship or marriage, and it can outline the responsibilities of each spouse during the marriage.

So with everything that a prenup can do, what can’t be included in the document? The first thing should be obvious: nothing illegal can be put into a prenup. More to the point though, you can’t include anything relating to child custody or child support in a prenuptial agreement. You also can’t waive your right to alimony in the document. Last but not least, you can’t have language in the document that would encourage a divorce.

Source: FindLaw, “What Can and Cannot be Included in Prenuptial Agreements,” Accessed Oct. 26, 2017

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