Prenuptial and postnuptial agreement solicitors

A prenuptial agreement (prenup) is a written agreement couples can enter into before getting married. For people entering into a civil partnership the same type of document is called a pre-registration agreement or a pre civil partnership agreement.

A prenup or pre civil partnership agreement lets people who are planning to get married or enter a civil partnership agree what should happen if they separate in the future.

How do prenups work?

In England & Wales, prenups work by allowing you to ring-fence certain assets that you want to keep out of a future divorce settlement.

Before making your prenup, you each need to make a list of all the financial assets you own, then decide who should receive what if you separate.

Once you’ve made these decisions, you need to ask a family law solicitor to set them out in a prenuptial agreement or pre-registration agreement. You each need to take independent legal advice before signing your prenup, to ensure you have not been unduly influenced and you understand how prenups work and the implications of signing the agreement.

When it’s been signed, your prenup is officially in place. Although prenups aren't legally binding, courts in England & Wales will take them into consideration.

5 things to know about getting a prenup or pre-registration agreement

These are the 5 most important things to know about prenuptial agreements:

1. a prenup lets you and your spouse decide how you will divide your assets if you break up in the future
2. no two prenups are the same and your prenup can include any assets you want, such as property, business assets, inheritance, savings and even what happens to your pets
3. prenups aren’t legally binding, but they are certainly taken into consideration by family courts in England and Wales
4. a judge will only enforce a prenup if they are satisfied that both people took independent legal advice before signing the prenup, the agreement is fair and reasonable and it meets the needs of the children (if there are any)
5. a prenup can help to avoid a potential 50/50 split of assets, including any that were acquired before the marriage

Does a prenup have to be signed before the wedding?

A prenuptial agreement needs to be signed at least 21 days before the wedding takes place. This will have a significant bearing on whether a court decides to uphold the prenuptial agreement if you and your partner get a divorce later on.

Prenups can take time to draft, particularly if there are any points that the couple don't initially agree on. For this reason, it's important to allow plenty of time for the prenup to be drafted, agreed upon and signed well before the wedding takes place.

Is a cohabitation agreement the same as a prenup?

If you are not married, there are two types of agreement you can enter into, a cohabitation agreement or a prenuptial agreement.

A cohabitation agreement is for couples who are living together, but don't have plans to get married or enter a civil partnership. A prenup or pre-registration agreement is for couples who are planning their marriage or civil partnership.

Find out more about cohabitation agreements.

Can you make a prenup after marriage?

You can only make a prenup before you've got married. If you're already married and you want to enter into an agreement with your spouse, you'll need to make a postnuptial agreement, or postnup.

What is a postnuptial agreement?

A postnuptial agreement (postnup) allows people who are already married to set out what would happen if they were to separate or get divorced.

Prenuptial, postnuptial and pre-registration agreements are particularly important when people have different amounts of money and/or property or are expecting to receive an inheritance. For example, someone who has divorced before and received a property as part of a divorce settlement, may want to keep that property separate if they decided to remarry.

Prenuptial agreements are commonly called ‘prenups’ and so we’ll refer to prenups on the rest of this page to provide information which applies to prenuptial, postnuptial and pre-registration agreements.

Are prenups legally binding in England or Wales?

Not under current law but recent family law and divorce cases have proved that a court can take a prenup into account when deciding how assets between a husband and wife or partners should be divided. See court upholds prenup case study.

This is the case where a prenup has been freely entered into by people who understand the full implications of what they are doing. There are exceptions though, for example where one person is under excessive pressure or can be dependent on issues such as the age or maturity of those involved.

What can a prenup include?

Prenups are written to fit your personal circumstances. What to include in a prenup:

• how each of you contributes to rent, mortgage or household bills until you’re able to vacate or sell your home, if this is what you’ve agreed
• how you will deal with any joint bank accounts or debts
• how you will deal with any property or the sale proceeds of a property, after paying off any mortgage or sale costs
• what will happen to any items you’ve bought together including cars and furniture
• what would happen to your pets
• maintenance for either of you or any children
• who the children will live with and arrangements for seeing the other parent

Are there any disadvantages of a prenup?

For some people, the decision to make a prenup can seem like a negative one, making a prenup should be beneficial. If the couple do get divorced in the future, their prenup can simplify financial matters during this time.

As long as each person has taken independent legal advice and fully understands the terms of the agreement, then the agreement should be fair and there shouldn't be any disadvantages of a prenup.

What we will do

We will provide clear explanations so you completely understand the process.

We’ll ask you to provide all the information we need and prepare the agreement and advise you on how to complete it and get it witnessed. You and your partner will then receive an original copy.

Once we have provided you with a written quote for the agreed work, that price will not change.

The family law team at Co-op Legal Services includes specialist family solicitors, divorce solicitors and children law solicitors with Resolution accreditation and accredited experts in child abduction, co-habitation, domestic abuse, property disputes, high net worth money matters and financial advocacy.

Resolution is a national organisation of family lawyers committed to non-confrontational divorce, separation and other family problems.

As part of the Co-op Group, our values of openness, honesty, social responsibility and caring for others are core to the service we provide.