Also known as ‘nuptial’ or ‘marital’ agreements, Pre-Nuptial Agreements are becoming increasingly common.
Many people now marry later in life having already acquired assets such as property or pensions. Some have been married before and now wish to exercise more control over settlement should the marriage end.
The aim of a Pre-Nuptial Agreement is to allow the parties to make their own decisions about what will happen to their assets if the marriage ends. This avoids the stress and uncertainty of contested court proceedings where all assets are said to be in the ‘pot’ for division.
Most commonly, parties may wish to ringfence assets which they have acquired before the marriage. They may also wish for inherited assets to be kept out of the pool of assets to be divided. Each Agreement is tailor made for the couple in accordance with their wishes. Couples are encouraged to review their Pre-Nuptial Agreements every few years or if children are born. This enables the Agreement to remain up to date and relevant to the circumstances at the time.
Whilst Pre-Nuptial Agreements are not yet fully binding in our legal jurisdiction, they are becoming increasingly effective and influential. However, certain guidelines must be followed if the Agreement is to have maximum effect. This is why it is important that each party has their own independent and expert legal advice when entering into a Pre-Nuptial Agreement. It is also important that each party to the Agreement completes and shares a schedule of their property, assets, pensions and income before the Agreement is completed. This transparency will help if the Agreement is challenged in the future.
We can prepare a Pre-Nuptial Agreement for you and send it to your partner and their solicitor for approval. We can also advise you on a Pre-Nuptial Agreement that has been sent to you for approval by your partner’s solicitor.
Fees
Our costs for this work will be in accordance with our hourly rate and will ultimately depend on how much work is needed to agree the precise terms of the Agreement.
Our fees for drafting an Agreement are usually in the region of £700 – £800 + VAT.
Our fees for advising on an Agreement that has been drafted by another solicitor are usually in the region of £250 – £350 + VAT.
We can give you a more accurate costs estimate once details of the case are known.
We provide a service to store original Agreements for you at no extra charge.
Contact Us
If you want to discuss your Pre-Nuptial Agreement please contact Dan Bonsall on 0161 434 0600 or info@didsburyfamilylaw.com.