Whenever a prenuptial agreement is mentioned in popular culture, the parties involved are usually incredibly wealthy. This association—that only the wealthy benefit from prenuptial agreements—is partly to blame for the general public’s lack of knowledge about them. Since most people aren’t incredibly wealthy, they write off prenuptial agreements as something that wouldn’t benefit them; unaware of the potential benefits to average couples; they miss out on the opportunity to save themselves thousands of dollars in future litigation costs should the parties later divorce.

Surprisingly, the average couple about to be married benefits just as much from a prenuptial agreement as a rich celebrity. Because prenuptial agreements define and establish certain terms before marriage and are legally binding, they allow couples to avoid having to litigate those terms in the future.

In no particular order, here are four surprising things you can do with a New York prenuptial agreement:

1) Define marital and separate property

One of the biggest tasks the court faces during divorces is determining what property is marital property and what property is separate. Because New York is an equitable distribution state (where marital property must be divided fairly, but not necessarily equally), designating certain assets as separate property can prevent it being subject to the equitable distribution law if the parties divorce.

2) Designate the owner of pre-marriage debt

Along the same lines, the parties can also choose to designate certain debts as belonging to solely one party. For instance, if one party has $50,000 in credit card debt the prenuptial agreement can establish that debt as belonging only to the person who benefited from it, instead of both parties becoming responsible for repaying the debt after marriage.

3) Establish spousal maintenance and support

Parties can also agree to set the amount of maintenance and support one spouse would receive if the couple divorced. Alternately, the prenuptial agreement can state that both parties agree that there will be no maintenance or support paid.

4) Establish support for children from a prior marriage

If either party has children from a prior marriage, a prenuptial agreement can establish support for those who are not adopted and are minors. Note that, while prenuptial agreements can establish support for children from a prior marriage, they cannot establish support for future children that the couple may have.

Prenuptial agreements and family law representation for New York residents

At the Law Offices of Stacy Sabatini, Esq., we specialize in family law representation for New York residents in Rockland, Orange, and Westchester counties. If you and your significant other are wondering whether a prenuptial agreement might be right for your family, please visit us online at www.sskfamilylaw.com to schedule your consultation at our New City, New York office.