Why are prenuptial agreements not required for all marriages prior to getting a marriage license since divorces are about dividing assets and determining child custody/support? Wouldn’t this help make divorces easier and help avoid doomed marriages?
They could be, but if they were, what a shame. And here’s why:
(I addressed this in a previous answer I gave on Quora, which you can see either by clicking here or reading it below)
Does having a prenup demonstrate lack of trust in your future marriage?
Of course, even if that is not the intent of wanting a prenuptial agreement.
The reason is clear: because 1) marriage is intended to last a lifetime; and 2) a prenuptial agreement (also called a “premarital agreement”) is an agreement made in anticipation of a possible divorce, a prenuptial agreement inexorably has the effect of planting seeds of doubt about the viability of the marriage. That’s no way to start a lifetime endeavor. A prenuptial agreement is unavoidable evidence (not proof, but evidence) that neither party is truly, fully committed to the marriage.
I am a divorce lawyer who is happily married and who, God willing, will stay married. I believe in marriage. I don’t want to see people divorce unless they must. Which is why I discourage most people from getting prenuptial agreements. I make money when people ask me to prepare a prenuptial agreement. But just because I make money when I prepare prenuptial agreements doesn’t make prenuptial agreements good for the clients.
This does not mean that no one should ever contemplate, let alone sign, a prenuptial agreement. Prenuptial agreements may be warranted or even necessary in certain situations (for example: the super rich, people who are remarrying after a divorce or after the death of a spouse, to name a few).
A big problem with prenuptial agreements is that lawyers push them on people who don’t need them, so that the lawyers can make money preparing unneeded prenuptial agreements.
Utah Family Law, LC | divorceutah.com | 801-466-9277