Prenuptial agreements or prenups are definitely on the rise. Those of us in family law find that encouraging. Having handled many divorce cases over the years, we believe that it’s in the best interest of a healthy relationship to talk about the very issues you least want to talk about, and do it well in advance of getting married.
Should you get a prenup? Because we believe in love and marriage, we’ve listed many of the top complaints we hear most often in divorce cases to give prospective newlyweds a sense of the sorts of issues that can hurt a marriage when left unspoken. We encourage you both to read through the list below, check anything you can relate to, share them with your prospective partner, and let the dialogue begin!
- You believe in talking about things, especially important things, and there are some issues you feel are important to talk about before getting married.
- One of you either owns more or earns more or both.
- Your parents had a nightmarish divorce and you’d rather not do the same.
- You need some info because you’re not real clear on what your fiancé’s financial status is.
- One or both of you have debt you need to pay off.
- You’ve invested everything in your small business and you want it to stay just yours.
- One or both of you will bring children to the marriage from past relationships.
- You’re an optimist but a practical one, so you’d like to talk about what spousal support (formerly known as alimony) would look like if things don’t work out.
- Either you have a pet or you both do and you’re not sure how that will play out in terms of who owns them, who pays for them, who walks them or changes the litter box.
- Your fiancé has major student loans and plans to use his income during the marriage to pay it off.
- You’re a private person who’d prefer to sign something with a confidentiality and disparagement clause before entering into a marriage.
- You simply want to figure out who owns what before you get married.
- You both love the house or condominium you own and your fiancée plans to move in after you’re married. Should you add her name to the deed?
- You simply want to figure out who pays for what before you get married.
- It’s only fair that your fiancé knows now that if things don’t work out, you’d insist on doing mediation first before going further.
- One of you has an heirloom that you’d like to protect and keep intact so it will appreciate in value.
- One of you is divorced and has a blended family with the former partner.
- You haven’t told your fiancé yet but you stand to inherit property from your parents.
- You’re thinking of buying a house but you’re the only one with money. You’d like to set expectations about ownership and reimbursement.
- Fingers crossed you stay married, but if it doesn’t work out, you’d like to simplify the process and save money on legal fees.
Though we’re of the opinion that a prenup never hurts / always helps a couple regardless of whether they stay together or not, we hope this exercise will be a great first step toward talking about the sorts of things which, left unsaid, can damage a relationship.
As pro-marriage divorce lawyers, we’re firm believers in helping engaged people understand their married legal rights and obligations. And we feel so strongly about the value of a prenup that we charge a flat fee to our clients.
Want to have a conversation with an experienced family law and prenuptial agreement lawyer?
If you or someone you love is interested in getting a prenuptial agreement, learn more about how the family law and prenup attorneys at Laughlin Legal can represent you and your values. Call us now at 650.343.3486 to schedule your first consultation with us. If you’d prefer, you can email us to set up your appointment. If we miss your call, we will respond promptly and call you back as soon as possible.
Laughlin Legal Family Law Group
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