Prenuptial agreements have become increasingly common. Fewer people, however, are familiar with postnuptial agreements (postnups) and when getting one may be a wise decision.
Postnups can serve a number of purposes. For a couple who got a prenup before they married, a postnup can let them update that based on changes in income, assets, priorities, the role of each spouse and the state of the marriage.
A prenup, by definition, cannot be updated after the marriage. A postnup would need to replace it instead. Couples who didn’t get around to creating a prenup can get a postnup when they return from their honeymoon.
A postnup, however, can be updated over the years as things change. Some couples even draw up a postnup or modify their current one if they’re anticipating divorce and want to negotiate some matters on their own before officially filing for divorce. It can become a “pre-divorce agreement” of sorts.
Division of assets and debts
For a couple who’s divorcing after many years of marriage, their prenup could be so outdated that it’s basically useless. A postnup can address how their current assets will be divided – including real estate, investments, retirement savings, a business, inheritances that may have become commingled with joint assets and more. It can also address how their current debts will be divided.
Agreement on alimony
The income and earning potential of each spouse can be vastly different than they anticipated prior to marriage. One spouse may have become wildly successful and outearn the other considerably. One spouse may have ended up largely leaving the workforce to focus on raising the children, managing things at home or helping their husband or wife in an unpaid and unstructured role.
A current postnup can help protect that spouse by stipulating that they’ll receive alimony that will help them maintain their marital lifestyle if the couple divorces. That’s particularly important if it would be difficult or impossible to do that on their own.
Whenever and for whatever reasons a postnup is drawn up, each spouse needs their own legal representation. This helps ensure that the postnup is fair and legally valid should it be needed if the couple divorces.