A prenuptial agreement can be a useful way to protect each party’s assets and reduce the number of complications that a divorce can bring with it. However, it’s important to realize that these documents need to stand up to scrutiny. You or your spouse can challenge a prenup if you split up and there are some cases where such an agreement can be thrown out. Our Morris County, NJ prenuptial agreement attorneys can help you craft an agreement that will be easy to enforce.
What Are Some Good Reasons to Challenge a Prenuptial Agreement?
There are a few solid reasons to take issue with a prenuptial agreement during the divorce process. One party might claim that:
- They only signed the agreement under duress
- They were rushed into signing the prenup
- Some of the provisions are blatantly unfair to one party
- There has been a change in circumstances that renders the prenup unfair to one party
- There are provisions about matters that prenups should not cover, like child custody
What If I Wasn’t Allowed to Review a Prenuptial Agreement With a Lawyer?
A problem can also arise if one party claims that they were not given ample opportunity to review an agreement with their own attorney. Obviously, you’re going to trust someone you are getting married to, but it’s still a good idea to do your due diligence and review any contract that you sign.
If someone was rushed into signing the prenup and did not get the chance to talk to their own lawyer first, that’s suspicious. That could lead someone to believe that the agreement signed was unfair in some way, even if they do not understand exactly how they are being taken advantage of. The court might agree with the party challenging the prenup and the entire thing could be voided.
What Happens After the Court Nullifies a Prenup?
When your prenup is no longer enforceable, you have to go through the entire property division process in accordance with the laws of the state where you filed for divorce. This can mean that you end up losing far more property than expected. Your spouse could also end up getting an alimony agreement that’s far more generous than the one the prenup would have given him.
So you need to be honest and upfront when making a deal like this. Let the lawyers review the contract and make sure that everyone knows exactly what they are getting into. If you try to hide something or do something sneaky, that’s just going to serve as grounds for challenging the prenup later.
Schedule Your Consultation
If you have questions about a prenuptial agreement that’s already in place or you want to draft one of your own, we can help. Contact Townsend, Tomaio & Newmark, L.L.C. to schedule a consultation with our team. We’re here to answer all of your questions.
