A prenuptial agreement, despite the myths, isn’t just for the rich and famous. A prenuptial agreement is a written legal contract between two people before marriage. The contract lists the property or assets each person owns and, if the marriage ends, what each person’s property rights will be afterward.

Prenuptial agreements are used to protect assets, though they also serve a broader purpose. You can use them to define financial rights, avoid arguments in the event of divorce, pass specific property onto children from prior marriages, and protect yourself from your spouse’s debts, such as student loans.

A prenuptial agreement is a preventive measure and a helpful legal tool to set clear boundaries for couples that desire it.

What is a Postnuptial Agreement?

Postnuptial agreements aren’t as standard or as widely known as prenuptial agreements, though they serve a specific purpose nonetheless. For couples that don’t want to sour the wedding with a prenuptial agreement, change their minds, or their financial situation has changed, a postnuptial understanding might make sense to prepare for the future.

A postnuptial agreement includes decisions about both spouses’ assets, alimony, maintenance, and payment plans, including child support and legal fees. It can happen after marriage to plan for a divorce. Both spouses must hire an attorney and decide on a list of assets and requests to start the paperwork and filing process.

Postnuptial agreements are exclusively about protecting assets and finances for couples concerned about divorce or the state of their relationship. Contact our legal team to see if a postnuptial agreement makes sense for your situation:

Do I Need Both a Prenuptial and Postnuptial Agreement?

A prenuptial agreement is a contract a couple enters into before marriage that outlines the terms in the event of divorce. A postnuptial agreement is a prenuptial agreement created after the marriage takes place.

You can consider a postnuptial agreement if you decide to modify or change any terms of your prenuptial agreement, though you do not need both. They each serve specific purposes, and the validity of these agreements aligns with timing—before or after marriage.

Engage an attorney before you get married to discuss a prenuptial agreement or after you get married to protect you and your children with a postnuptial agreement.

How Can an Attorney Help Me?

Nearly 50 percent of marriages end in divorce. The couples that are realistic about this fact might consider a prenuptial or postnuptial agreement as simply a wise business decision. The most common reasons for divorce include arguing, infidelity, unrealistic expectations, abuse, and lack of equality.

An attorney can bring you and your spouse together before marriage—or for couples remarrying after divorce—to discuss your assets and how a prenuptial agreement will protect both of you and your children in the event of a divorce.

Whether prenuptial or postnuptial, an attorney can bring a realistic point of view to the conversation when determining the best legal route to protecting yourself and your assets in case your marriage ends. Schedule a conversation with our attorneys to discuss both agreements and how they can protect you: (702) 935-4144.