Assistance Drafting Prenuptial and Postnuptial Agreements to Keep Your Assets Safe
Parties with substantial assets often enter into prenuptial or postnuptial agreements to structure and manage their assets. Such agreements are useful to confirm understandings and expectations between the parties relating to their assets and for estate planning and asset-protection purposes.
What Are the Benefits of These Agreements?
People entering into a second marriage are much more likely to ask their spouse to sign a prenuptial or postnuptial agreement than people entering a first marriage. There are several reasons for this. People who have been divorced once understand the emotional and financial cost of achieving a property settlement agreement through litigation. In addition, people entering into a second marriage often execute a marital agreement to:
- Protect assets brought into the marriage
- Protect the property rights of children from a first marriage
Terry Hart is a Houston prenuptial agreement attorney in the Galleria area. Before he became a divorce attorney, he was a business lawyer for more than 20 years. As a result, he brings a practical and businesslike approach to prenuptial and postnuptial agreements and believes they are useful not only in second marriages, but also in first marriages when one of the parties brings significant assets and a high net worth into the marriage.
Given statistics that half of all marriages end in divorce, it makes sense to specify which assets each party should receive in the event of a divorce. Texas has adopted the Uniform Premarital Agreement Act and Texas law is well-developed regarding premarital agreements.
Your Options Do Not End After Your Wedding
Postnuptial agreements can also be used by married couples to structure the holding of assets. Community property can be converted into separate property, and separate property can be converted into community property. Postnuptial agreements cannot be used, however, to impair the rights of existing creditors.
Contact Terry Hart online to learn more about prenuptial and postnuptial agreements. You can also call him at 713-581-1773 or toll free at 877-576-7390.