Prenuptial agreements (called “Pre-marital Agreements” in New Jersey) are popular for people entering into second marriages – particularly when the new spouses want to share what they acquire together, but not what they brought into the marriage.
Premarital agreements set forth the spouses’ rights in the event of death or divorce, ensuring the children receive their rightful legacy and the new spouses can share what they created together.
Under New Jersey law, there are three requirements, without which the premarital agreement is not enforceable. First, the agreement must be fair when entered into. Second, each party must have his/her own lawyer or sign a waiver of that right. And third, the prenuptial agreement must have schedules attached to it spelling out each party’s assets, liabilities, and income in some detail.
Premarital agreements present an opportunity for new spouses to creatively deal with the eventuality of death and the possibility of divorce to avoid legal skirmishes in the future.
Peter Paras is a New Jersey divorce lawyer and name partner in the family law firm of Paras, Apy & Reiss, P.C. in Red Bank, NJ. He is also a past member of Divorce Magazine’s Advisory Board.
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