Prenuptial agreements can have significant benefits for almost anyone who is thinking about getting married. The simple truth is that many marriages, unfortunately, do end in divorce, and as a result, there are many loose ends to tie up before your wedding could be declared at an end by a family court judge. Not only that, a prenuptial agreement can help you and your family better communicate regarding issues surrounding finances, property, assets, debt, and other financial matters. Let’s go through each of these subjects and show you just what I mean in greater detail.
Why not negotiate with your spouse to be before your marriage?
One of the big misnomers about divorce is that your case is likely to end up in family court. A divorce case is as unlikely to go before a judge as just about any outcome in the law. While it is true that family law attorneys tend to spend a great deal of time in court, it is very infrequent that a family law attorney will have a trial on a divorce case. The reason for this is that almost every family court in Southeast Texas will require you to attend a session of mediation with your spouse to determine whether or not a settlement to your case is possible. I have even seen some judges require parties to mediate their case more than once to ensure no possible way for a settlement to be reached.
With that said, a divorce in Texas is much more about negotiation than litigation. Meaning: you need to become comfortable with the idea of working with your spouse in a divorce to finalize your case. At the same time, you both will likely have attorneys to assist you in this process, the most functional divorce cases that I’ve been a part of seeing the spouses themselves able to tolerate direct communication about the issues in their case and are willing to work with the other person through their attorneys to negotiate the rest of the matters. This should tell you a couple of essential things about your marriage and the prospects of a future divorce.
For one, you need to be aware that many people going through a divorce cannot communicate well with their spouse and think clearly. You may think that you will have some clearness of mind associated with your divorce case, but I can tell you from experience that it is unlikely that you will be at the top of your game from a mental perspective during your divorce. Something about the stress, anxiety, and distractions that come with the divorce causes people to lose a certain degree of mental acuity. That is important to keep in mind because you will need to plan for any problems that arise in your marriage to be well equipped to do what you want in a way as advantageous to you and your children as possible.
The second thing to keep in mind regarding the need to negotiate through the issues in your divorce is that if you cannot think clearly and are having problems in your marriage, then you should be able to work with your spouse before you are even married ongoing through the many issues that are a part of your financial lives. Let’s spend a little bit of time discussing with those issues might be and how it could be in your favor to discuss them even before you say your “I do’s.”
Texas is a community property state in the laws of community property will determine how your marital property is divided and community a state is divvied up between you and your spouse. This is not something that should scare or intimidate you, but it should cause you to keep in mind that the stakes of your divorce will be high even if you lead a relatively simple life from a financial perspective. Your retirement benefits, savings, investments, any real estate you own, including your home, as well as the debts that both you and your spouse have in curd, will be subject to division in the divorce.
It would help if you took from this in importance on working with your spouse to talk through the issues of your life and determine the best way possible to move forward from them in terms of your family case. Do not assume that just because you are negotiating prenuptial orders that you will necessarily get a divorce. Keep in mind that by drafting a will with your spouse, you are not saying that both of you will pass away as soon as you sign on the dotted line of that document, either.
Instead, a prenuptial agreement is a rational, reasonable, and mature response to the realities of modern life for many married people. Before you are married, I would take the opportunity to work with your spouse while you are on excellent terms to figure out how a division of your marital property will look once you get married. Eventually, a divorce could be necessary. You do not need to be concerned with not preparing any language in the document for your children since issues regarding your kids are largely off-limits in a prenuptial agreement.
Instead, your prenuptial agreement will almost certainly encompass only financial matters and give specific instructions on handling certain categories of your financial life. It is impossible to determine where your economic life will go between now and a possible end to your marriage. However, you can take the time to plan these things up thoroughly while your mind is clear and you are on good terms with your spouse. This is as opposed to handling these matters while you are involved in a time-consuming, emotionally driven, and overall tricky divorce with the person you are on poor terms with.
Every person in a marriage needs to make decisions along with their spouse on how to prepare four significant events in your life. I can tell you that very few person who go through with a prenuptial agreement come out the other side and regret having done so. On the contrary, being prepared and vigilant about protecting yourself and your spouse as you head into a marriage can be a great way to work on issues and communication. That is what I would like to close out today’s blog post by discussing.
The process of negotiating the prenuptial agreement can help you and your fiancé with communication
the other major benefit of drafting and negotiating a prenuptial agreement with your spouse is that doing so can help you with communication as you head into your marriage. No matter how close you and your fiancé are and no matter how much you communicate on the issues that impact your lives, I have very rarely met people who have spoken all that well with one another when it comes to their finances. Not only is it a reasonably dry subject and not overly interesting, but it is a deeply personal and, for many of us, a subject that we would rather not discuss with anyone. This could be because you are not proud of the financial decisions or have other hang-ups associated with talking about money.
This is not uncommon, given that many of us do not grow up in households where money is a subject discussed very much. When money is discussed in many homes, it is often negative and with connotations that are not beneficial for the people involved. It’s almost like we discuss money only when we have two and only one time is terrible. Rather than carry over these bad habits into your new marriage, you can use your prenuptial agreement discussions to springboard yourself into better communication skills as young newlyweds.
For instance, if you go through marriage or pre-marriage therapy, the counselor will often have you and your fiancé create a budget for your lives after you are married. This accomplishes two things. The first thing that is accomplished is is that it will force you and your spouse to work together and communicate on a shared goal. It is thought that if you can share about a subject like money, then there is no end to what you and your fiancé will be able to talk about, good or bad. The other thing that budgeting with your fiancé will do is force both of you to be honest about your insecurities surrounding money, your income, your debts, and many other subjects that could potentially harm you in marriage.
A prenuptial agreement is a lot like drafting a budget but even more detailed. You will be forecasting your financial lives together and will be dividing up your marital property in such a way that is fair and practical for both of you. Any misconceptions that either of you had heading into the marriage from a financial perspective will likely be answered in this process. You do not need to look at the drafting number prenuptial agreement as something purely functional or analytical. Instead, there are emotional and relational aspects to drafting these documents, and if you believe that you and your spouse could benefit from doing so, you should bring up the subject directly with them and share your thoughts.
Finally, negotiating and drafting a prenuptial agreement will cause both of you to stop where you are and listen to the other person. Rather than assume things about the other person or have unanswered questions as you head into marriage, you can answer any questions and put to bed any doubts. Still, you had about the other when it comes to your goals for the union and what your financial picture looks like with those goals. This is especially important if you and your fiancé are coming from different positions as far as money is concerned.
For example, suppose you will be entering into a marriage with a great deal of debt, and you are concerned about your spouse ending up with portions of that debt in a divorce. In that case, you can take note in your prenuptial agreement that particular pieces of your estate are to remain yours separately even if the law would hold them to be community debts otherwise. Yes, obligations that you enter into the marriage with would generally be considered your separate debt period; however, it is conceivable that you could bring up more debt on a credit card home equity line of credit or another type of financial instrument that could potentially count as community property, as well.
If you know that your financial habits or financial responsibility could negatively impact your spouse, you can protect them by drafting a prenuptial agreement. Far from being a selfish action, a prenuptial agreement can be one of the more selfless things you do for yourself and your fiancé.
Questions about the material contained in today’s blog post? Contact the Law Office of Bryan Fagan
if you have any questions about the material contained in today’s blog post, please do not hesitate to contact the Law Office of Bryan Fagan. Our licensed family law attorneys offer free consultation six days a week in person, over the phone, and via video. These consultations are an excellent way for you to learn more about the world of Texas family law and can also help you to understand more in detail how our attorneys and staff are here to assist you and your family in whatever family-related matter is currently ongoing in your lives.
Bryan Fagan, a native of Atascocita, Texas, is a dedicated family law attorney inspired by John Grisham’s “The Pelican Brief.” He is the first lawyer in his family, which includes two adopted brothers. Bryan’s commitment to family is personal and professional; he cared for his grandmother with Alzheimer’s while completing his degree and attended the South Texas College of Law at night.
Married with three children, Bryan’s personal experiences enrich his understanding of family dynamics, which is central to his legal practice. He specializes in family law, offering innovative and efficient legal services. A certified member of the College of the State Bar of Texas, Bryan is part of an elite group of legal professionals committed to ongoing education and high-level expertise.
His legal practice covers divorce, custody disputes, property disputes, adoption, paternity, and mediation. Bryan is also experienced in drafting marital property agreements. He leads a team dedicated to complex family law cases and protecting families from false CPS allegations.
Based in Houston, Bryan is active in the Houston Family Law Sector of the Houston Bar Association and various family law groups in Texas. His deep understanding of family values and his professional dedication make him a compassionate advocate for families navigating Texas family law.