How To Get a Prenup

In this article, prenup agreement solicitor Robin Charrot looks at how to get a prenup.

Contact Evolve Family Law for prenup legal advice.

Getting a prenup

There are a few basics to think about if you want a prenup:

1. Find a family law solicitor with prenuptial agreement expertise.
2. Give yourself sufficient time to broach the subject of signing a prenuptial agreement with your partner.
3. Instruct your family lawyer early enough so they can advise you on the agreement, negotiate the terms and finalise it at least 28 days before the wedding.

An effective prenuptial agreement takes time to prepare; it isn’t downloaded off the internet and should not be rushed. Remember, your partner will also need time to consider the benefits of a prenup before being rushed into signing.

Choosing a family lawyer for prenuptial agreement advice

Choosing a lawyer for prenuptial agreement advice is harder than it sounds. Although most family law solicitors can advise on relationship agreements, you want a lawyer who:

1. Will advise you on the fairness aspects of the prenuptial agreement – the lawyer’s advice may seem contrary to your interests or those of your family, but it is not.
2. Has substantial experience in financial settlement negotiations and court representation and therefore understands how the court will assess needs when making a financial court order in a financial remedy application.
3. Is empathetic and able to negotiate with sensitivity to the situation.

At Evolve Family Law, our prenuptial agreement solicitors understand that you need expert family agreement legal advice, but you don’t want your relationship and marriage plans jeopardised by lawyers taking a bullish attitude in letters or roundtable negotiations about what should go into the prenup.

Are prenups unromantic?

One of the issues about getting a prenup is the fear that you will be labelled as unromantic and that will cause your fiancée or fiancé to have doubts or cast a pall over the wedding preparations.

Whilst prenups may not be romantic, they do show that you care and that you are taking your marriage seriously. That’s because a prenuptial agreement must be ‘fair’ to both husband and wife or to both civil partners for it to be effective. Therefore, if you are the financially weaker party to the marriage or civil partnership, the suggestion of a prenup, whilst not romantic, offers peace of mind and a degree of financial security.

When family members are taking the first steps to your getting a prenup.

Our prenuptial agreement solicitors are often approached by third parties making initial enquiries to help an engaged couple get a prenup. There can be many very valid reasons for this, such as:

1. Parents want to protect the deposit on the family home because they gifted the deposit money to their son or daughter.
2. Grandparents intend to make lifetime giftsto a grandchild as part of estate planning and want to keep their gifted money ‘in the family’.
3. A parent or grandparent, having transferred assets to a child to avoid care home fee issues or to minimise inheritance tax, wants to ensure that the transferred property is ring-fenced in the prenuptial agreement.
4. A family member who has transferred shares in a family business to the younger generation as part of business and retirement planning wants to safeguard their gift.
5. The trustee of an onshore or offshore discretionary trustwants to protect beneficiaries because the trustees anticipate making future capital or income distributions.
6. A family member has left a substantial legacy in their Will to the fiancée and wants to ensure that the legacy is protected through ringfencing by the fiancée getting a prenuptial agreement.
7. A parent or family member has been through a difficult divorceand wants the engaged couple to have a prenup to ensure that they don’t end up in a bitter and expensive court battle over how to split their assets.
8. A parent or other family member is from a country where prenuptial agreements are commonplace.
9. An accountant, financial advisor or other professional whose job is to provide their client with financial protection wants to ensure their client receives specialist prenup legal advice. For example, a sports agent whose young client is a high-earning sportsperson with a time-limited career or a financial advisor whose client has won the lottery or received a personal injury compensation award.

Sometimes, a fiancé or fiancée, who is the financially weaker party to the forthcoming marriage, may actively seek a prenuptial agreement to show they are not a gold digger and are not marrying for financial reasons. Equally, the financially stronger party to the engagement may want to protect their partner by providing the security of a prenuptial agreement that meets their needs should the couple decide to separate after their marriage.

How to get a prenup

The often-asked question is ‘how to get a prenup’, whereas the question really is ‘how do I get my partner to agree to a prenuptial agreement and how do I tactfully raise the topic?’

Every couple is different, so what works for one won’t work for someone else. Prenuptial agreement solicitors say it is best to avoid the topic whilst on bended knee or when saying yes to a marriage proposal. Equally, it is best not to leave the question of a prenup to the last minute when you or your partner is stressing about wedding arrangements and last-minute preparations.

For a prenup to carry weight with the family court in any future financial remedy application proceedings, it should ideally be signed at least 28 days before the wedding. That means the topic of the prenup agreement must be raised well in advance of the wedding date so the agreement’s contents can be fully discussed and negotiated.

One of the best ways to raise the topic of a prenup is in a general discussion about your future together. For example, you may be planning to move in with a partner, buy a house together, or start a family.

Another option is to raise the topic of a prenup during discussions about post-marriage financial planning. This could include conversations about:

1. Writing a new Will.
2. Signing a new Lasting Power of Attorney.
3. Taking out additional life insurance or critical illness insurance.

The key point about a prenup agreement is that it should protect both of you; it must be fair and meet both of your respective needs to be given weight by the family court.

Conditions for a prenup

Prenuptial agreement solicitors say that unless an engaged couple comply with certain conditions, the prenup may carry little or no weight in any future financial court proceedings. The conditions are:

• The prenup must have been freely entered.
• The implications of signing the prenup were understood.
• Both signatories to the prenup provided financial information about their assets, income and any debts.
• Both parties took Independent legal advice on the prenup.
• The agreement is not significantly unfair to one spouse or civil partner.
• Ideally, the agreement was finalised at least 28 days before the wedding.

Prenuptial agreement solicitors say that if you are interested in learning more about signing a relationship agreement, the best way forward is to have a chat with an expert so you get a better idea of how a prenup may help protect your family.

Northwest family law and prenuptial agreement solicitors

For legal help with a prenuptial agreement, call Evolve Family Law or complete our online enquiry form.