Λ Σ Υ PRESENTS: LA PLENA
NOVEMBER 2006
The Dahkil Chapter of Lambda Sigma Upsilon Inc. presents,
“Till Prenupt Do Us Part”: Prenuptial Agreements
1.0 Purpose: vorce and any rights to spousal
support during or after the disso-
If every marriage was a Cin- lution of marriage.
derella story, then every one
would live happily every after. In 1.1 History:
reality about one in three of all
first marriages end in divorce, and Contrary to popular belief
L A P L E N A 50 percent of second and third prenuptial agreements have been
marriages end in divorce as well. around for thousands of years.
1.0 As a safeguard from unfavorable During the 19th century, before
Purpose litigation following a divorce, the Married Women's Property
What is a prenuptial agreement? there is a preemptive device de- Act of 1848, the agreements were
signed to help secure an equitable necessary for women in the
1.1 dissolution between former cou- United States. Until the act be-
History ples if need be; this solution is a came law, everything a woman
Where does the concept of a pre- prenuptial agreement. owned or inherited was trans-
marital contract come from? ferred to her husband. If he died
Prenuptial agreements are not or divorced her, she could lose
only rising in popularity, but legal everything.
1.2 and financial experts consider it
Today to be smart financial planning. 1.2 Today:
How do prenuptial agreements Nancy Dunnan, a New York City
function today? financial adviser states, “Think of Essentially marriage is a legal
it as a business arrangement or as contract between two people.
1.3 an insurance policy to help re- With regard to your property, the
How it Works move some of the emotion that's provisions of your marriage con-
Why should you consider a Pre- naturally involved. Marriage is tract are governed by the laws of
nuptial agreement? not just an emotional and physical the state in which you live — and
union -- it's also a financial union. these laws determine how assets
A prenuptial and the discussions will be divided in case you di-
1.4 that go with it can help ensure the vorce — unless you and your
Pros & Cons financial well-being of the mar- spouse decide you want to write
Is a prenuptial agreement right for riage.” your own marriage contract in-
you? stead. When you write your own
What is a Prenuptial Agreement? marriage contract, it’s called a
1.5 prenuptial agreement.
Conclusion A prenuptial agreement,
Prenuptial agreements can offer commonly abbreviated to prenup 1.3 How it works:
or prenupt, is a contract by two
the best legal defense against an
people prior to marriage. The Prenuptial agreements accomplish
expensive divorce, but why else content of a prenuptial agreement three basic things:
should you consider signing one? may vary, but commonly includes 1. They keep property separate.
provisions for the division of 2. They keep debt separate.
property should the couple di-
LAMBDA SIGMA UPSILON LATINO FRATERNITY INC. www.lsu79.org
Λ Σ Υ PRESENTS: LA PLENA
NOVEMBER 2006
3. They allow couples to set
terms for spousal support. • Having a prenuptial marriage This Newsletter was designed,
It is important to realize that a agreement does not mean written, and edited by:
prenupt only applies to property. that a couple is anticipating
divorce. KEMET
A prenupt can also allow for the
waiver of spousal support. Some • Financial matters need to be
may provide for specific spousal faced.
payment agreements (for in- • Prenuptial agreements can
stance, that the wife will receive preserve family ties and in-
$2000 a month), but due to infla-
tion and other factors specific
spousal payment agreements are
heritance.
• If your future spouse won't
sign a prenuptial marriage
ΛΣΥ
Present’s
difficult to uphold in court and agreement, it may be best to
are actually prohibited in most discover this before the wed-
states. ding.
The process for creating a Cons of Prenuptial Agree-
prenuptial agreement is simple. ments:
Couples decide what works for
them and what stays with whom • Prenuptial marriage agree-
in the event of a failed marriage. ments can be set aside for
The deal between the couple will failure to disclose all assets,
generally be respected by the law, or if there is evidence of
but remember, this is a legal con- fraud, duress, unfairness, or
tract to which American contract lack of representation at the
law applies, and a divorce court time of signing the agree-
can and will overturn a private ment.
agreement if it finds that: • They are unromantic.
1.The agreement is likely to • Prenups can give the appear-
promote divorce — the con- ance that there is a lack of
tract gives one or both parties a trust between the partners.
monetary incentive to leave. • A prenuptial agreement
could create resentment be-
2.The agreement was written tween spouses.
November
with the intention of divorce.
3.The agreement was created 1.5 Conclusion:
unfairly — one of the parties
was coerced into signing the
contract.
A prenuptial agreement
should not be adversarial. It
should not be, 'What can I get if
10th 2006
things go wrong?' rather another
1.4 Pros and Cons
method to build trust because
you're talking right up front about
Pros of Prenuptial Agreements:
what's important to you.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
This newsletter is intended to progress awareness, as well as to augment questions and raise concerns. As always, Lambda Sigma Upsilon
Latino Fraternity Inc. encourages its readers to carry out their own research and draw their own conclusions.
____________________________________________________________________________________________
References:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prenup
http://www.divorcereform.org/rates.html
http://money.cnn.com/2004/03/19/pf/prenups/
http://www.biblenews1.com/marriage/marriags.htm
http://www.nolo.com/article.cfm/ObjectID/1AA1A917-D838-464B-94552B37E898CED2/catID/BD0FF030-3064-46
80-B419B66BA296767C/118/304/247/ART/
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LAMBDA SIGMA UPSILON LATINO FRATERNITY INC. www.lsu79.org