After you tie the knot and settle into married life, it’s important to review your financial situation every now and again. This may lead you toward learning more about a postnuptial agreement.
Just the same as a prenuptial agreement, it’s designed to protect assets you bring into a marriage, to protect the inheritance rights of children from a past relationship and to safeguard your business, among other details.
The primary legal difference between a postnuptial agreement and prenuptial agreement is when you enter into an agreement. As the name suggests, a prenuptial agreement is created before you marry, while a postnuptial agreement happens after you tie the knot.
Should you consider a postnuptial agreement?
Many people prefer a postnuptial agreement to a prenuptial agreement because they don’t have to ask for it before getting married. This allows you to avoid the potentially awkward situation of discussing divorce before you’re even married.
Other reasons to consider a postnuptial agreement include:
- To ensure that both individuals protect themselves from debt that the other brought into the marriage
- To protect an individual who may stop working to raise their family
- To define what will happen to assets that each individual brought into the marriage
Is it valid?
Creating a postnuptial agreement is easier said than done, as there are many conditions that can invalidate it. These include but are not limited to:
- Opting for a verbal postnuptial agreement, as opposed to putting it in writing
- If one individual forces the other one to sign the document
- The inclusion of invalid provisions
- The inclusion of incomplete, inaccurate or false information
- Grossly unfair to one individual
You can take your time when creating a postnuptial agreement, as there’s no deadline in place. This allows you to talk things out, consider many different approaches and draft an agreement that works for both individuals.
Just because you create a postnuptial agreement doesn’t mean you’ll go through divorce in the future. However, if you want to give yourself peace of mind if something does go wrong with your marriage, this legal document will do just that.
Visit our website and read our blog for more information on postnuptial agreements, prenuptial agreements and the divorce process in Ohio.