How to Make Your Prenup in Menlo Park Last Longer Than Your Marriage

Prenuptial lawyers in Menlo Park wish that all marriages would stand the test of time.  The sad truth, however, is that about half of marriages really do end in divorce.  While no couple should get married anticipating that this will happen, working out some prenuptial details is the best way to protect you and your spouse in the event of a divorce.

Making a prenuptial agreement is one thing, but how can you make sure that it will stand up in court if your spouse contests it?  How can you make sure that a judge won’t throw it out?  Here are some key tips for making a prenup that will be binding.

• Make sure to get it in writing.  Take it from a prenup lawyer who has handled plenty of these cases in Menlo Park; oral agreements become “he said, she said,” and are not “worth the paper they’re written on.”
• Disclose all of your assets and liabilities.  If you or your spouse hide anything, the prenup may be tossed out on the grounds that full disclosure was not made at the time of signing.
• The prenup must be conscionable.  If the agreement is too lopsided, favoring one spouse over the other, a judge may throw it out entirely, leaving you with no protection.
• The prenup must be signed voluntarily.  Be sure to do this well before the wedding; one signed the day before, for example, may be seen as coercing the signature of the other party in order for the wedding to be held at all.
• Both parties must sign, and each party should be represented by a separate attorney.  You want proof that the signing was voluntary and fully informed, so separate attorneys are critical.

The details of a prenup are important, no matter which side of the contract you are on.  It may protect one spouse’s assets, but it can also protect a spouse from the other party’s liabilities.  Both parties have every reason to make sure that it is fair and properly executed.  It may seem unromantic, but it’s a necessary step, no matter what level of assets you may have.

Prenuptial lawyers in Menlo Park see cases where spouses have every right to contest the prenup, and are doing so because it is unconscionable.  Other times, there is a loophole in the contract that allows a spouse who should get less by the terms of the contract take a major bite out of his or her ex-spouse’s assets.

Making a prenup that is fair, legally binding, and that will hold up in court can be tricky.  Complicating the matter further is the fact that a wedding is emotionally charged.  Of course everyone wants the marriage to last and for the prenup to never come into play, but unfortunately, prenup lawyers in Menlo Park use these documents all the time to properly distribute assets during a divorce.  Love and good intentions just aren’t always enough.

October 21st, 2014 Posted to Prenuptual Agreement | Comments (1)