When is a Prenuptial Agreement Used?

Learn More About Prenuptial Agreements in the Buffalo, NY Region

A prenuptial agreement is an agreement that a couple comes up with before marriage that outlines their finances. A prenuptial agreement summarizes what will happen to property, assets, income, and debt if the marriage ends. Here are some protections that a couple getting a prenup should put into place:

• Children from a prior relationship - A child that was brought into the world before marriage, in a previous relationship, is only the responsibility of the biological parent. This is important to include in the prenuptial agreement because some spouses may try to get child support from their spouse for a child that isn’t theirs. 
• One of you is a stay-at-home parent - It happens all too often that a stay-at-home mom or dad is left with nothing after a divorce. A prenuptial agreement will ensure that a stay-at-home parent gets money, so they can get an apartment and any other essentials until they find a job.
• Significant assets - Some people are left very valuable assets by family or close friends. Assets can be in the form of a lump sum of money, jewelry, a car, a house, or even a business. Prenuptial agreements can put protections in place to protect assets that either party has inherited. 
• One of you owns a business - It’s very important to state who the owner of the business is in a prenuptial agreement because no one wants to go to court to fight for something that is theirs. A prenup will save you the headache of fighting for your business, should you and your partner get divorced.
• Debt - It’s not uncommon for people to have some sort of debt from college, but sometimes people have credit card debt which can take a while to pay off. A prenuptial agreement will outline who has debt and what it is to protect the spouse with no debt from getting stuck paying off debt that isn’t theirs later.