When you met the love of your life, you may have felt like your dreams were finally coming true. As you grew closer and began considering marriage, you may have had several discussions about important issues, such as having children someday, money, faith or, perhaps, what would happen if your relationship were ever to end in a divorce. Perhaps the topic of filing a prenuptial agreement in a Texas court came up.
You may have a relative or friend who signed a prenuptial agreement before their wedding day. Then again, you might have people in your inner circle telling you that it’s unromantic and that you shouldn’t sign a prenup because it means that your partner doubts that your marriage will last.
There’s a stigma attached to prenuptial agreements. The fact is, however, that you or your partner may have suggested signing a prenup because you care about each other and want to protect each other’s interests as you make plans to spend the rest of your lives together.
A prenuptial agreement enables you to designate separate ownership for certain assets, such as a business you own before marriage or an inheritance you received before your wedding day. It also helps you to avoid getting stuck with liability such as debt from your partner’s college loans. Signing a prenup doesn’t ruin the romance in your relationship.
You have no way to predict whose marriage will last a lifetime and whose might end in a divorce, including your own. While you cannot predict the future, you can set a plan in place to protect your assets, to provide for any children you might have during marriage and to make sure you have what you need to make ends meet if you one day decide to file for a divorce.
Sometimes, legal complications arise regarding prenuptial agreements. You might believe that you have grounds for challenging the validity of a portion or all of a prenup contract. Then again, you might find yourself on the other end of such circumstances, where you have filed for divorce and your ex is trying to get out of the agreement you signed before marriage.
Texas operates under community property guidelines in divorce. This means that if you file for divorce, the judge overseeing your case will likely split all marital property and liabilities 50/50 between you and your ex. Having a prenuptial agreement in place is often the best means for ensuring a fair settlement.