If asked who should draft a prenuptial agreement, most people would respond that only people of means should. That’s far from the case though. In fact, many people with limited assets have begun requesting prenups in recent years. You may wonder what’s the profile of those who request them and what motivates them to do it.
Individuals who are getting remarried have begun requesting prenups at increasing rates. They are doing this because many of them have been burned by lopsided divorce settlements before. They don’t want to put the few assets that they do own in jeopardy of being taken away from them again.
Future husbands and wives are also increasingly requesting prenuptial agreements before they walk down the aisle because they know that their partner has significant student loan or credit card debt. They don’t want to be held liable for paying it off if they split up.
Couples also request prenups when disparities in income exist between the two prospective spouses. Some even use them to designate how much in spousal support each is comfortable paying or receiving if their marriage were to end in divorce.
There are certain requirements that must be met in order for a prenuptial agreement to be considered valid in the state of Michigan. These rules exist to ensure that no one is coerced into signing away their rights to an equitable divorce. A Trenton family law and divorce attorney can advise you of those requirements and provide dedicated help with dividing property, debt and investments not able to be included in such agreements.