Family Law

Pre-Marital Agreements

Are prenuptial agreements, or pre-marital agreements, valid?

Yes, in general, prenuptial, or antenuptial, agreements are valid. The theory is that each party willingly entered into the agreement and, as such, are contractually bound. However, if a court determines that a party did not willingly enter into the prenuptial agreement or the agreement was based on fraud, then the agreement will not be enforceable. For example, a party can contest a prenuptial agreement if he or she did not receive full and frank knowledge of all available assets of the other person. Likewise, a party can try to contest the validity of such an agreement if the agreement is too one-sided or unfair as to be considered unconscionable under state law.