Pre/Post Marital Agreements

Pre-Marital & Post-Marital Agreements

A pre-marital agreement is an agreement entered into prior to marriage. A post­ marital agreement is entered into after the parties have marriage. Both agreements will define the spouses’ rights and responsibilities should they later divorce or a spouse passes away.

There are many reasons why a person wants to enter into pre or post-marital agreements. Sometimes it may be that you are embarking on a second marriage and want to protect the property you acquired prior to the marriage and the growth of that property. While the property you owned prior to the marriage is defined as your “separate property” in a divorce and the other spouse is not entitled to a division of the separate property, the growth or appreciation of the separate property during the marriage is “marital property” and subject to division. You can protect the appreciation of your separate property in divorce by entering into a valid pre or post-marital agreement.

A pre or post-martial agreement can be used to ensure your legacy is devised to your non-joint children upon death. The spouses can enter into the agreement and contractual determine the assets which will be passed down to the children, usually non-joint children rather than the spouse. The agreement can also ensure the spouse will receive his or her fair share of the property upon death of the other spouse.

A pre or post marital agreement can be used to define your rights and obligations upon divorce. It can state how assets will be divided and debts paid. By having an agreement, a divorce case is simplified.

Pre and Post Marital agreement must meet statutory requirements in order to effectuate proper, enforceable agreements. If the statutory requirements are met, the agreements pertaining to the division of assets and debts are binding upon the courts, both in death and upon divorce.

 Ms. Drake has drafted many pre and post marital agreements. She has also litigated cases to obtain an order invalidating agreement where the agreements are not prepared properly, and the statutory rules have not been followed. Ms. Drake can assist you in ensuring the proper preparation of pre and post marital agreements so that your property rights upon protected upon death or divorce.