A prenuptual or premarital agreement is a written agreement entered into by a couple in contemplation of marriage before they marry which becomes effective upon marriage. The terms prenuptual agreement and premarital agreement are completely interchangeable and such agreements are most commonly referred to in California as premarital agreements.

A premarital agreement allows a couple to define certain economic and personal aspects of their marital relationship pursuant to their own terms as opposed to being governed by state marital laws. By entering into a premarital agreement couples can tailor the terms of their own marital (and post marital) relationship.

In order to enter into a valid premarital agreement in California, the agreement must be in conformance with the statewide Uniform Premarital Agreement Act (UPAA). Under the act, property which may be the subject of a premarital agreement includes any "interest, present or future, legal or equitable, vested or contingent, in real or personal property, including income and earnings".

A premarital agreement may deal with a wide variety of issues between prospective spouses including:

• The rights and obligations of each of the parties in any of the property of either or both of them acquired before, during or after the marriage.
• The making of a will, trust, or other arrangement to carry out the provisions of the agreement.
• The ownership rights in and disposition of the death benefit from a life insurance policy.
• The choice of law governing the construction of the agreement.
• Any other matter, including personal rights and obligations so long as the terms of the agreement are not in violation of public policy or statutes imposing a criminal penalties.

Why have a premarital agreement?

Nobody wants to think at the beginning of a marriage that it will ever end in divorce. The sad fact is that, in more than half of the cases, marriages have a beginning, a middle, and an end. And anyone who has been through a divorce will tell you that, without a premarital agreement, the end of a marriage can be a litigation nightmare for the parties, for their children, and for other family members.

A properly drawn and executed premarital agreement provides the parties with a measure of certainty as to how property and debts will be divided at the end of an unsuccessful marriage and may greatly reduce or even eliminate the issues which must be expensively litigated. The trouble and expense of drafting and executing a prenuptial agreement generally does not begin to compare with the trouble and expense of the legal battle resulting from the absence of a premarital agreement.

California has adopted the Uniform Pre Marital Agreement Act and has developed strict requirements for the drafting and execution of premarital agreements. It is essential that these requirements be followed. South Bay Divorce will guide you through these procedures including:

• Drafting the agreement in consultation with the client
• Drafting advisements and waivers which must be formally delivered to both parties before the agreement can be signed.
• Proper execution and notarization of the agreement.
• Proper care and storage of the agreement.

Contact us to schedule a free half hour consultation with a South Bay Divorce family law attorney to handle the drafting or review of your premarital agreements.