Combining your assets and debts with a spouse in marriage is a meaningful decision, especially when one or both spouses bring significant net worth to the marriage. While creating a prenuptial agreement is often the smartest way to protect wealth when entering a marriage, postnuptial agreements still offer value for those who did not enter such a contract before the marriage.
At Palmer Family Law, our postnuptial agreement lawyers in Parker, CO, help clients draft and review these agreements to ensure they accurately reflect their interests. Contact us today to request an appointment.
The Differences Between Postnuptial and Prenuptial Agreements in Colorado
A postnuptial agreement is very similar to a prenuptial agreement. Both contracts detail how a couple would like to divide assets and debts in the event of divorce or death. However, prenuptial agreements are created before the marriage, while postnuptial agreements are drafted while a couple is already married.
When a couple creates and signs a postnuptial agreement, it takes effect immediately upon signing. Rather than using this agreement as a tool to anticipate future life and asset sharing during a marriage, postnuptial agreements often serve purposes such as:
- Addressing changes in finances, debt, or business growth that occurred after the wedding
- Preserving the marriage by creating a foundational guide for how asset and debt division would be handled
Postnuptial agreements often face strict judicial review. Working with an experienced postnuptial agreement lawyer in Parker, CO, throughout this process is key to walking away with a signed, enforceable contract.
Topics a Postnuptial Agreement Can Address
A postnuptial agreement can clarify how you and your spouse will handle financial and property rights in the event of divorce or death. These topics may include:
- Dividing marital property, such as the marital home, joint and separate bank accounts, vehicles, and business interests
- Retaining separate property, such as inheritance funds or property acquired before the marriage
- Handling finances during the marriage, such as dividing income when one spouse is giving up their career to be a stay-at-home parent or sharing household expenses
- Paying spousal maintenancein the event of divorce, including amounts and durations
- Coordinating property distribution after one spouse's death, including preserving assets for children from a prior marriage
- Navigating ownership of pets in the event of divorce
The main topics that are off-limits in both prenuptial and postnuptial agreements are child custody and child support. Custody determinations are highly dependent on what is best for the child at the time of divorce. You also cannot legally waive or reduce a child's right to financial support.
Why Create a Postnuptial Agreement With Palmer Family Law?
At Palmer Family Law, we are highly experienced family law attorneys who have helped countless clients draft marital agreements that address their unique goals and circumstances. As property division lawyers, we thoroughly understand how divorce proceedings work in Colorado and which assets and property are at stake without a comprehensive marital agreement.
We help clients explore all of their assets and debts, consider their lifestyles and goals, and draft agreements that are both fair and reflective of their values within the marriage. We often recommend postnuptial agreements for clients who:
- Want to address shifts in wealth that have happened during the marriage
- Seek to safeguard inheritances to ensure that they stay on their side of the family
- Need to rebuild trust after a major relationship breach, such as infidelity or reckless spending
- Were planning to create a prenup but ran out of time or never got around to it before the marriage
Contact Palmer Family Law Today
If you are ready to create a legally sound marital agreement, our postnuptial agreement lawyers in Parker, CO, at Palmer Family Law will guide you through this process. Contact us today at 720-399-7434 for a consultation.
We also guide clients through spousal rights and considerations under common law marriage and can help you understand whether this is the right path for you.