A prenuptial agreement is a good tool to use to avoid a lengthy and costly divorce later. Of course, no one plans on getting divorced before they even get married, but if you have valuable assets or plan on acquiring ones, and you don’t want to risk losing them in the event of a divorce, a prenup is something to consider. However, many are under the wrong impression that the finalization of a prenup is a simple signing of a contract. In reality, before a prenuptial agreement can be approved, both parties must complete a financial disclosure statement, identifying all of their assets and debts. The parties will be viewed to have a confidential relationship which brings with it the duty to disclose, mutually attributed to each party.

A lack of complete disclosure may result in the parties’ agreement being invalidated., especially where there is an obvious inequity between the parties’ assets. A big part of the court approving a prenup is if they consider it to be fair to both parties. In order to avoid any potential issues, later on, full disclosure must be in writing. Each party should draft a financial disclosure affidavit, which will be attached to the prenuptial agreement as an addendum. This schedule should clearly demarcate, and thereby disclose, all of the party’s assets to the other. There should be a listing of the party’s assets, along with how much it is valued; any current outstanding liabilities, the amount/sources of the party’s income, any interests in businesses, partnerships, and any expectations of inheritances or gaining of another asset.

After this, the party’s will review and sign the section of the agreement that states that both parties have read each other’s financial disclosure affidavits, understand it, acknowledge reading it, and have had the opportunity to consult with their attorney about it prior to signing. This protects both parties from the other claiming they never had the chance to review or look over the documents. However, it is important to keep in mind that in the event you are getting a divorce, if you can prove your spouse did not fully disclose their income or assets at the time you signed the prenup, you may have grounds to have the agreement thrown out.