When two adults meet, fall in love and decide to get married, they always hope theirs is a “till death do us part” contract. Unfortunately, this is not always the case. Marriage can often end with a contentious divorce. And signing a prenuptial agreement can help protect your interests when this happens.
A prenuptial agreement is a binding contract that two parties sign before tying the knot to protect their assets should the marriage end in a divorce. While a prenup is not a mandatory requirement before marriage, more and more couples are opting for it.
A prenup agreement comes with several benefits. Here are some of them:
Separate personal assets from marital assets
A prenuptial agreement can help each party separate the assets they bring into the marriage from those they acquire while in the union. This is especially important in an equitable distribution state like New York, where each party has the right to manage the assets in their name.
Protecting the children from the previous relationship
If one spouse passes on, the surviving spouse usually assumes the sole rights to all the assets from the marriage. This might strip children from a previous relationship of any inheritance unless there was a will, a trust or a prenuptial agreement in place.
Protection from the other party’s debts
It is not uncommon for one or both parties to get into marriage while in debt. If you know that your soon-to-be spouse has debts, or is financially irresponsible, then signing a prenuptial agreement can be a prudent way of avoiding the burden of sharing debt that you had nothing to do with.
Contrary to popular perception, signing a prenuptial agreement does not imply that you are planning to divorce while at the same time planning to marry. Putting a prenuptial agreement in place gives you both peace of mind that could help your marriage to flourish.
