With divorce rates continuing to remain high, as well as many people deciding to marry later in life, a prenuptial agreement can be an important tool for protecting assets accumulated prior to marriage.
Prenuptial agreements are sometimes referred to as premarital agreements, prenups or antenuptial agreements. These are contracts written prior to a marriage to determine issues such as:
- Property division
- Maintenance (alimony)
- Payment of attorneys’ fees in the event of a divorce
What Is Excluded From A Prenuptial Agreement?
Some aspects of family law, such as child custody, cannot be legally predetermined by a prenuptial agreement. Most people are aware of stories of vicious divorce battles over property and maintenance issues and the stress and anxiety that can result. The use of a well-drafted prenuptial agreement can be a successful mechanism for avoiding expensive and confrontational divorce litigation.
What Is A Postnuptial Agreement?
A postnuptial agreement is similar to prenuptial agreement except that it is drafted during the course of the marriage. Like a prenuptial agreement, a postnuptial agreement can also be used as a way for married couples to lay out their expectations about property and financial responsibilities in the event of a dissolution of marriage.
There are a number of reasons to consider a prenuptial agreement prior to marriage, including the protection of a party’s significant nonmarital property and the avoidance of a contentious divorce case.
What Is A Cohabitation Agreement?
This contract can help individuals who decide to live together, but not marry, protect their individual assets.
Contact Us To Get Started
At Hurst, Robin, Kay & Allen, LLC, our attorneys have assisted many clients in Chicago in reviewing, negotiating, drafting, challenging and enforcing relationship agreements. Our lawyers are thoroughly familiar with Illinois family and contract law, and are thus in a unique position to represent clients in this area of the law.
If you wish to create, challenge or enforce a prenuptial, postnuptial, cohabitation or domestic partnership agreement, we invite you to contact the attorneys at Hurst, Robin, Kay & Allen, LLC, for an appointment. Call us today at 312-782-2400 or send an email.