Before you get married, you and your spouse may want to sign a prenuptial agreement. Prenups can get a bad rap, but they are actually quite useful and they can help save a lot of money and time when you get divorced. However, it’s important to note that a prenuptial agreement cannot cover everything. One thing that our Dallas County prenuptial agreement lawyers won’t help you put into a prenup is a provision about child custody.
Why Can’t Child Custody Go in a Prenuptial Agreement?
A prenuptial agreement can address a lot of matters, but it is never supposed to decide child custody, child support, and other related matters. This is because, in the eyes of the court, these are not decisions that are supposed to be made in advance. Instead, things like child custody should be decided based on the best interests of the child at the time of the divorce.
Life can throw a lot of curveballs your way, so it just doesn’t make sense to make a decision about child custody or visitation years in advance. If there is a provision about custody in your prenup, the judge is likely to strike it down and ignore it.
What is a Prenuptial Agreement Supposed to Do?
So what does a prenup actually do? While it cannot address child custody and similar topics, there are plenty of matters that a prenuptial agreement can actually cover. This document can include provisions about:
- Property and assets brought into the marriage by each spouse
- Protecting children from previous marriages
- How shared property gets distributed in a divorce
- What happens to individual debts
- Who should pay alimony and how much
These agreements are a great way to address financial matters and ensure that you and your spouse are on the same page before you get married. We know that couples do not want to think about the potential for divorce before they even walk down the aisle, but creating a prenup can be the responsible thing to do!
How Can I Make Sure That My Prenup is Legally Binding?
You have to follow certain rules to make sure that a prenuptial agreement is binding in Iowa. You must be sure that:
- Neither party is hiding assets or debts
- This is a voluntary agreement for both parties
- The agreement is in writing
- Both parties have consulted attorneys
When you want to be absolutely sure that your prenup is binding, you should visit our lawyers. We can help you write an agreement that covers all of the topics that are important to you while leaving out any provisions that could affect its legality.
Meet With Our Lawyers
If you are thinking about drafting a prenuptial agreement of your own, contact Iowa Defenders, PLLC. We can help you make an agreement that protects your interests while avoiding some common legal pitfalls.
