Prenuptial agreement
A prenuptial agreement, antenuptial agreement, or premarital agreement (commonly referred to as a prenup) is a written contract entered into by a couple before marriage or a civil union that enables them to select and control many of the legal rights they acquire upon marrying, and what happens when their marriage eventually ends by death or divorce. Couples enter into a written prenuptial agreement to supersede many of the default marital laws that would otherwise apply in the event of divorce, such as the laws that govern the division of property, retirement benefits, savings, and the right to seek alimony (spousal support) with agreed-upon terms that provide certainty and clarify their marital rights.[1][2] A premarital agreement may also contain waivers of a surviving spouse's right to claim an elective share of the estate of the deceased spouse.[3]
This article is about the contract. For the album by J. Stalin, see Prenuptial Agreement (album).
In some countries, including the United States, Belgium, and the Netherlands, the prenuptial agreement not only provides for what happens in the event of a divorce but also protects some property during the marriage, for instance in case of bankruptcy. Many countries, including Canada, France, Italy, and Germany, have matrimonial regimes, in addition to, or in some cases, instead of prenuptial agreements.
Postnuptial agreements are similar to prenuptial agreements, except that they are entered into after a couple is married.[4] When divorce is imminent, postnuptial agreements are referred to as separation agreements.[5]
Premarital mediation[edit]
Premarital mediation is an alternative way of creating a prenuptial agreement. In this process, a mediator facilitates an open discussion between the couple about all kinds of marital issues, like expectations about working after children are born and saving and spending styles as well as the traditional premarital discussions about property division and spousal support if the marriage is terminated. The engaged couple makes all of the decisions about what would happen in the event of a separation or divorce with the assistance of the mediator. They then draft either a deal memo or a premarital agreement and have it reviewed by their respective attorneys. An agreement developed via mediation is typically less expensive. After all, fewer hours are spent with attorneys because the couple has made all of the decisions together, rather than one side vs the other.
By religion[edit]
Christianity[edit]
In Catholic Christianity, prenuptial agreements are a matter of civil law, so Catholic canon law does not rule them out in principle (for example, to determine how the property would be divided among the children of a prior marriage upon the death of one spouse). In practice, pre-nuptials may run afoul of Church law in several ways. For example, they cannot subject a marriage to a condition concerning the future. The Code of Canon Law provides: "A marriage subject to a condition about the future cannot be contracted validly". (CIC 1102) The Canon Law: Letter and Spirit, a commentary on canon law, explains that a condition may be defined as "a stipulation by which an agreement is made contingent upon the verification or fulfillment of some circumstance or event that is not yet certain". It goes on to state that "any condition concerning the future attached to matrimonial consent renders marriage invalid". For example, a marriage would be invalid if the parties stipulated that they must have children or they have the right to divorce and remarry someone else.
In Lutheran Christianity, The Lutheran Handbook on Marriage stipulates: "Consider a prenuptial agreement, which helps you identify the value of gifts and inheritances you receive, protects you from your partner's pre-marriage debt, and ensures that children from a prior marriage receive."[59]
Independent Fundamental Baptists reflect a perspective that prenuptial agreements are contrary to Christian teaching regarding marriage as a covenant:[60]