FAMILY LAW FAQ
Reasons a Premarital/Prenuptial Agreement Maybe Invalid

No Written Agreement. Premarital
agreements must be in writing to
be enforceable.

Not Properly Executed. Both parties, before the wedding, must sign
premarital agreements.

You Were Pressured. An agreement may not be valid if one of the
spouses was pressured by the other or (by his or her lawyer or family)
to sign the agreement.

No Time For Consideration. A prospective spouse entering into a
premarital agreement must be given time to review it and think it over
before signing it. If the groom hands the contract and a pen to the
bride just before she says, "I do," the agreement is probably invalid.

Invalid Provisions. Although a premarital agreement can cover just
about any financial aspect of the parties' relationship, it cannot in any
way modify the child support obligations that either spouse would
have if the marriage should end in divorce. Any other provisions of the
agreement that violate the law would also be invalid. It is possible,
however, that the court would enforce the remainder of the
agreement, striking the illegal clauses.

False Information. A premarital agreement is valid only if entered
into after full disclosure by both parties of their income, assets, and
liabilities. If one prospective spouse provides the other with
information that is not true, the agreement is invalid.

Incomplete Information. Failing to provide pertinent information is
as bad as providing false information, and it renders the agreement
unenforceable.

No Independent Counsel. Because their separate interests are at
stake, both parties to a premarital contract should, and in some
states must, be represented by their own attorneys or the agreement
will not be enforced.

Unconscionability. It's true that you can agree to give up your right
to inherit from your spouse, which you would otherwise be entitled to
do upon your spouse's death, even if he or she left you out of a will.
You can sign away your right to spousal support if you should end up
in divorce court, even if your spouse makes ten times as much money
as you do. You can even agree that your spouse gets all of the
property and you get all of the bills, if that is what you want to do.
But if the agreement is so grossly unfair that one party would face
severe financial hardship while the other prospered, the court is
unlikely to enforce it. "Unconscionable" contracts are generally found
invalid, and premarital agreements are no exception.

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