At the start of your marriage, you may not wish to know how you might sort things out should your relationship come to an end. The practicality of this step does however prove useful in the event in which the spouses do wish to part after having been married for a number of years. Prenuptial agreements in London can be drafted and personalized to suit the needs of the two individuals, without influencing their future marriage.
In this article, our prenuptial agreement solicitors in London answer some of the most common questions about these types of contracts. If you wish to know more, or are in need of expert legal advice concerning divorce or separation, our team is ready to answer your questions.
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What is a prenuptial agreement?
A prenuptial agreement is a contract between the two future spouses, concluded before the marriage. It includes specific terms for the division of assets and an agreed settlement in the event in which the marriage is irretrievably broken.
A prenup in London is commonly concluded between the two parties, especially if one or both have amassed a high net worth up until the date of the marriage.
Such as agreement lays out the manner in which the assets will be divided and can include the following clauses:
- Property and debt identification and listing (what each party owns and owes before the marriage);
- Spousal support after divorce;
- Child maintenance and other child issues; prenuptial agreements in London that include this clause can save the time and expenses related to litigation to resolve child issues in the event of divorce;
- The treatment of the marital residence;
- Debt protection;
- Property distribution after the death of one of the spouses.
Are you unsure if you should sign a prenup? Our divorce lawyer in London can evaluate your case and provide you with specific information depending on your current financial status, both your individual finances and your shared assets (if any). Choosing to talk to a divorce lawyer about this topic is advisable as as expert will be able to give you adequate information.
Do I need a prenuptial agreement?
While prenuptial agreements in London are common tools for wealthy individuals living in London, they are not restricted to these types of individuals. These contracts have a high level of practicality, and they are useful for preventing a future lengthy settlement process in the event of divorce.
A prenup in London can be useful in a number of cases:
- you will receive an inheritance or have substantial wealth you wish to protect or decide solely upon its distribution;
- you have children from a previous marriage and you wish to make sure that, upon divorce, your spouse will not receive 50% of your assets;
- you have a business and wish to make sure that it will remain solely under your control or under the control of an agent assigned by yourself;
- you are marrying a foreign national and wish to protect your UK assets from the laws that may be in force in another jurisdiction.
These are just some simple examples of the reasons why one or both parties may decide that a prenuptial agreement is needed.
Can your prenuptial agreement solicitors in London help me?
The legal aid provided by a lawyer is particularly valuable before entering into such an agreement. Both parties can choose to work with their own lawyer who will advise them in the fairness of the terms set forth in the contract.
Our solicitors can help you draw up a prenup in London and represent you in front of the other party, as needed, if any negotiations are in place.
A prenup does not impinge upon the romanticism of marriage. It is simply a manner of ensuring a reasonable division of assets, in a straight manner that was agreed upon from the very beginning.
The available data shows that there were 107,599 opposite-sex divorces in the UK in 2019. Other relevant statistics, made available by the ONS and presented by our prenuptial agreement solicitors in London are the following:
- Divorce rates: the divorce rate was increased by 18.4% in 2019, compared to 2018 when the number of recorded divorces was 90,871;
- Cause of divorce: 49% of the wives who divorced in England and Wales in 2019 listed unreasonable behaviour as the cause for divorce; the percentage of husbands who listed the same cause was 35%;
- Same-sex couples divorce: there were 822 divorces among same-sex couples in 2019; unreasonable behaviour was also cited as the most common grounds for divorce (63% for women and 70% for men);
- Marriage duration: in 2019, the average length of a marriage in the UK at the time of divorce was 12.3 years for opposite-sex couples, a slight decrease from 12.5 years in 2018.
If you wish to know more about pre- and post-nuptial agreements, you can contact our prenuptial agreement solicitors in London.
