You’ve Popped the Question, How Do You Spring the Prenuptial Agreement?

Asking your fiance for a Prenuptial Agreement doesn’t have to spoil the romance and joy of your engagement. A Prenuptial Agreement is an excellent way to protect yourself and loved ones in the event of divorce or death. The key to a Prenuptial Agreement is to begin a dialog well ahead of the wedding date—this is not something to spring on an unsuspecting fiancé at the last minute.

Be prepared, be rational and explain why you need a Prenuptial Agreement 

It might be part of a larger discussion about the necessity of financial and life goals and estate planning–preparing Wills, Living Trusts, Power of Attorney and Healthcare Directives. A Prenuptial Agreement, therefore, becomes just another instrument that will govern the financial aspects of a marital relationship. It’s one of many difficult conversations that you will have with your spouse.

Many couples these days are getting married later and have acquired assets that they want to protect. They may have also acquired assets through inheritance or divorce. It’s not unusual that both partners have assets that they do not want to become community property, and a Prenuptial Agreement protects that property. 

Prenuptial Agreements can be crafted to suit a variety of circumstances

They can be limited to specific issues, such as ownership of family businesses or premarital property, or cover a wide range of issues, including spousal support, alimony, allocation of debts, recoupment of separate contributions to joint property, responsibility for children’s college expenses, guardianship of children, and/or estate planning.

If you have an interest in a family business or have children from a prior relationship, then a prenuptial agreement is a good idea. No one wants to fight over property or incur legal fees in the event of divorce or death. A Prenuptial Agreement can avoid those traps by creating predictable results before any conflict begins.

At California Document Preparers, we encourage our Prenuptial Agreement clients to also consult with an attorney, and we can recommend excellent family law attorneys who can provide additional counsel on this matter. Having separate representation will allow your loved one to ask questions that might be uncomfortable for you or your lawyer to answer.

We help prepare an increasing number of Prenuptial Agreements for couples who are getting married. Come in to one of California Document Preparers’ 3 Bay Area offices to get started.