Nobody would want to discuss divorce when they are getting engaged. Sometimes, signing a prenuptial agreement is the best thing you can do for your marriage. The unromantic feeling while signing a prenup is better than the feeling you get when you have to divorce without a prenup.
Not having a prenup will prove to be an expensive mistake as it can cost you half of what you own. Prenups can be an important consideration if you belong to any of the following:
- You are an older couple who have acquired assets.
- A couple who come into the marriage with assets.
- You have kids from past relationships.
- People who expect significant future income such as high net-worth individuals.
High Net-Worth Divorce
This is a unique scenario of divorce that happens with:
- A person with a joint net worth with the spouse or individual net worth of more than 1 million dollars at the time of divorce, excluding the value of the primary residence of the individual.
- A person with an individual income of more than $200,000 or joint income with the spouse that exceeds $300,000 in the past two years and a probability of getting the same income in the current year.
Such financial situations carry specific differences that require the skill set of a high net-worth family lawyer. Reputed family lawyers will help you to protect your assets and finances from the expensive divorce proceedings.
High net-worth divorces carry additional complications such as the creation and enforcement of prenups, understanding estate parameters, and international investments. In-depth knowledge of financial agreement in family law is important to handle such cases.
Out of the overall divorce that happens in Australia, high net-worth divorces are relatively a small percentage. Most of the divorces comprise individuals from low to moderate economic and social populations.
Prenuptial Agreement for Everyone
Prenups are not just for the super-rich couple. Creating a prenuptial agreement for the married couple or a cohabitation agreement for the unmarried couple makes sense for a lot of the population.
A young couple can benefit from the creation of prenuptial agreements as it provides them with a chance to plan out issues such as paying off the student loan debt of the partner, or compensation for leaving the workforce to take care of the future kids.
Matrimonial Property Division
When you are going through a divorce, you will want to protect your finances at any cost. You will be able to do it by thoroughly understanding marital property division, community, and separate property.
You should keep in mind that you will be able to divide the marital property the way you want. You will have to take things to the court only when you and your partner cannot agree on how the property will be divided.
Separate property is the property individually owned by each spouse before the marriage. Partners will retain these even after the marriage. Partners will also retain the property inhabited by them during the time of the marriage.
Community property is the property earned during the marriage. Community property could be divided 50-50 or you can ask for equitable distribution. Sometimes, the higher wage-earning partner might get 60%-75% of the property.
You will be able to understand specific laws of property divisions when you work with a family lawyer in the state where you’re filing for a divorce.
It is important to protect yourself, regardless of how your marital property is divided. Sometimes your spouse might not make payments because of illness, spite, or lack of money.
You will have to return to court or find other means of collecting the lost payment in such situations. As soon as the divorce agreement is done, we recommend you play safe by getting in-hand cash.
If it is decided that you will be paid after selling an asset, then wait until the sale is finalised. Ensure that you get the money to finalise your divorce.
Avoid these Mistakes in a Prenuptial Agreement
Your prenup can be declared invalid if there are major mistakes. When your marriage turns to divorce this can cause a major headache. We recommend you thoroughly go through the points and avoid these mistakes before signing a prenup:
- Same Legal Representation:You and your partner need separate family lawyers to ensure that each of you understands the prenuptial agreement independently. Sign a prenup only if you are comfortable with it. You do not have to budge to any kind of pressure.
- Signing A Prenup Just Before the Wedding: You should not be waiting till the last minute to sign a prenuptial agreement. If you file for a divorce soon after the wedding, then an argument can be made that one party was coerced into signing the prenup. Ideally, a prenup should be signed one to three months before the wedding. This will give the significant other some time to think about and understand what they are signing.
- Signed Under Duress:Prenups can be invalidated if one party is pressured into signing or was influenced by alcohol or drugs, which affect their mental capacity.
- Child Support Provisions:Do not include child support or custody in your prenuptial agreement. When a couple with kids file for a divorce, the court verdict will be based on what’s best for the child and not what is there on the prenup. A prenup can be invalidated if it includes child support or custody.
- No Full Disclosure:Disclose all your debts and assets in the prenup.
- Unenforceable Provisions: If your prenuptial agreement has unusual provisions such as who will do the dishes or who will take out the trash, it will weaken the prenup and will be considered as unenforceable.
- Biased:Your prenup will be considered unconscionable if it is biased towards one individual.
- Ambiguous Writing: When the prenup has ambiguous wordings or unclear writing, it will be challenged in court.
- Oral Agreement: Your prenup cannot be an oral agreement; it must be a written document. Make multiple copies of it. Each spouse and their lawyers must have a copy of the prenup.
Working With a Family Lawyer
Divorce is one of the most challenging experiences that an individual will ever have to go through in life. A Divorce can affect all aspects of your life, right from your physical wellbeing to mental health and financial stability.
Professional assistance and the support of reputed family lawyers will make the process of divorce a bit easier. The team of lawyers at Fit Lawyers, Brisbane has thorough knowledge about the financial agreement in family law and have hands-on experience in dealing with a wide spectrum of cases in the field of family and divorce.
You will get the best legal advice with their expert knowledge and years of experience in the field.
Call Fit Lawyers on 0415 835733 or write an email to them at fitlawyers.au@gmail.com to talk to a reputed family lawyer or to get a better understanding of a binding financial agreement after separation.