Pre-Nuptial and Cohabitation Agreements

Protecting Your Finances Upon Separation

Whether you are about to get married or move in with your partner there are preventative measures you can take to protect your finances in the sad event that you later separate. These include:

• Pre-Nuptial Agreements
• Living Together or Cohabitation Agreements
   

Pre-Nuptial Agreements

With around half of all marriages ending in divorce, and many marriages including assets and children from previous relationships, it is wise to do all that you can to ensure your hard earned assets are protected.

If you would like advice about Pre-Nuptial Agreements, please complete our online enquiry form.

What is a Pre-Nuptial Agreement?

A Pre-Nuptial Agreement or Pre-Marriage Agreement as they are sometimes known, is a contract drawn up between a couple (before they get married) together with a solicitor, detailing all their property, debts, income and assets individually and together and detailing exactly how they will be distributed should they get divorced.

Is a Pre-Nuptial Agreement Legal?

In many countries, Pre-Nuptial Agreements are regularly enforced by the courts and in the UK Judges are now viewing Pre-Nuptial Agreements with increasing weight and recognition.

The agreements are legal documents but they are not legally binding if the Judge considers matrimonial law to have been contravened. How much significance an agreement has depends on the quality of it when it was drawn up. The court will take into account many factors including:

• Whether both parties took independent legal advice and knew what they we agreeing to.
• Whether either party signed under duress.
• Whether each party made a full and frank financial disclosure.

Provided all the above considerations are met, the Pre-Nuptial Agreement has a good chance of being upheld. It is worth noting, however, that there is already a good deal of matrimonial law in place and if the marriage is a long one or if the couple have children, the court will take steps to ensure the children and their primary care giver can continue to live in a way that promotes the children's well being and future, regardless of any agreement previously made.

Living Together Agreement or Cohabitation Agreement

Moving in together is an exciting time for many couples and talking about what might happen if the relationship runs into trouble is often not top of the agenda! These days, however, many couples are deciding to draw up a “Living Together Agreement”, not just for the eventuality of splitting up but also to clarify how they intend to live together.

If you would like information about producing a Living Together Agreement (Cohabitation Agreement) please use our online enquiry form.

Drawing up a Living Together Agreement is a highly individualised thing. You can tailor it to suit the two of you and any children you might have, setting out your ideas on:

• How you bought your home, who contributed what share and how you would divide it if your relationship were to break down.
• Your debts. It’s a good idea to draw up a statement of your debts at the beginning of the relationship showing who incurred what and who is responsible for paying them off.
• Arrangements for your children such as maintenance and how contact might be arranged.
• Wills. This does not replace the need for you to formally make a will, but you can supplement it with your intentions for inheritance.
• Your portable property (i.e. the goods in your home). Draw up a list of who brought what, what is considered to be shared and how you might deal with those shared items if you were to separate.
• How long the period of the agreement should last. Remember also to review it regularly, making amendments when any life changes arise.

The legal status of a Living Together Agreement is similar to that of a Pre-Nuptial Agreement. The agreement greatly enhances your chances of avoiding a difficult legal battle provided it is reasonable and does not contravene your legal rights.

The agreement would be a formal legal deed and therefore legally binding in the same way as any legal contract between two parties.