What a Florida Prenuptial Agreement Can & Cannot Do
An increasing number of Florida couples are signing prenuptial and postnuptial agreements, but many do not realize that prenups and postnups do not protect from all kinds of legal disputes that might arise between a married couple in the course of divorce proceedings.
Yes, there are many things prenuptial and postnuptial agreements can do, but there are also quite a few things prenups and postnups cannot do. Only a small percentage of Floridians know how to create a legally binding and valid prenuptial agreement without the help of a lawyer.
It is recommended to seek help from an Orlando prenuptial & postnuptial agreement lawyer who knows all the nuances of Florida’s family law to ensure that your prenup contains the appropriate language and wording to mitigate or prevent potential legal disputes in divorce.
What a Prenuptial Agreement Can Do
The top three reasons why people in Orlando and elsewhere in Florida sign prenups are to:
- Protect property and assets
- Allow for alimony
- Disallow for spousal support
Most couples and newlyweds create prenuptial agreements with one goal in mind: to mitigate and prevent property division disputes in divorce. But asset protection is not the only thing a prenup can do.
A prenuptial agreement may outline in which jurisdiction all family law issues or divorce proceedings will take place. A prenup can also contain provisions regarding each spouse’s roles, responsibilities, and obligations throughout the marriage.
Your premarital contract can detail where you and your spouse will live, how you want to raise your children, and provisions regarding kids from previous relationships, among other things.
But the key reason why Floridians create prenups is the ability to distinguish between separate and marital property. A prenuptial agreement can include directions for property division upon divorce and protect the original property owner’s right to ownership post-divorce.
What Cannot Be Included in a Florida Prenuptial Agreement
However, you cannot get all kinds of protections by creating a prenuptial agreement. In Florida, any provisions in a prenup that violate federal or state law or public policies are deemed invalid.
Besides provisions that detail anything unlawful, a prenuptial agreement cannot waive a spouse’s right to temporary alimony, nor can it include any decisions regarding child custody or the amount of child support payments.
Decisions regarding child custody and support can be made only by the courts based on the “best interest of the child” standard. However, in some cases, spouses manage to include a valid waiver of rights to alimony. Provisions regarding spousal support in a prenup will be honored by a Florida court unless:
- The spouse who waived the right to spousal maintenance becomes a dependent of the state;
- The waiver was signed by the spouse under duress or fraud.
In other words, as long as a prenup is fair and does not violate any legal or public policies, is in writing, and was created by an experienced Orlando prenuptial & postnuptial agreement lawyer, it will be deemed valid.
Contact our Orlando divorce attorneys at Donna Hung Law Group to draft a fair and legally-binding prenup or postnup in Florida. Call at 407-999-0099 to receive a confidential consultation.
https://www.donnahunglaw.com/how-to-split-marital-residence-in-florida-divorce-mediation/
