Pre-nups & Post-nups

We have extensive experience drawing up pre- and post-nuptial agreements, and those relating to civil partnerships.

No longer the preserve of celebrity marriages, more and more couples are looking at pre-nups to protect their assets. The agreement is a legal contract entered into before marriage or civil partnership, and usually includes provisions as to how property and assets are divided if the relationship breaks down. (If you are already married, you enter into a post-nuptial agreement).

Every agreement is unique but the aim is often to protect existing assets, such as wealth generated before the marriage; assets from a previous marriage, or inherited or business assets. You can also lay out provision for the future, protecting future inheritances, and putting a cap on maintenance payments.

Although pre-nuptial agreements are not automatically legally binding, they are highly likely to be followed if they are prepared properly. It is therefore essential that you get good advice to ensure that both the contents, and the procedure under which your agreement is drawn-up, are correct. If there are international issues involved, we can get advice from our network of international family contacts to ensure any agreement is compliant/ binding in other countries.

We know that the requirement for such an agreement can be a difficult conversation for a couple to have, and we will help you through the dynamics as well as the details.

There's more information about pre- and post-nups in this downloadable fact sheet.