A postnuptial agreement is a document signed after marriage that anticipates how various issues will be dealt with between you and your spouse during the marriage and in the event that you divorce.
It can help you and your spouse discuss financial matters openly and give you a level of certainty for the future. You may already know what you would like in the agreement, or you may welcome assistance in deciding how to deal with your financial matters going forward. At HPLP, our experienced postnuptial agreement solicitors can provide you with the level of advice and guidance you need.
Where necessary, we will negotiate with your spouse’s solicitor in order to ensure that the agreement is fair to you both and that it is in your best interests to sign.
Our postnuptial solicitors in London provide the following services:
- Advice on whether a postnuptial agreement is right for your situation
- Drafting and negotiating postnuptial agreements
- Advice if you have been given a postnuptial agreement to sign
- Post-civil partnership agreements
For more information on our services, see our family law solicitors in London page.
Speak to our postnuptial agreement solicitors in London today
Contact our expert postnuptial agreement lawyers in London now by calling 0330 025 0176 or by using the contact form for a prompt response.
How our postnuptial agreement solicitors can help you
Advice on whether a postnuptial agreement is right for your situation
If you are considering a postnuptial agreement, we can discuss your circumstances and advise on whether crafting one is in your best interest. If it is, we can give you guidance on the right structure for the agreement and the types of clauses you can include.
Drafting and negotiating postnuptial agreements
We are skilled in drafting comprehensive postnuptial agreements, and can provide the security you need while ensuring that matters are dealt with fairly.
We will work with you to identify what is of most importance to you and ensure that the agreement reflects this. You and your spouse will need to have separate legal representation, and we can negotiate with your spouse’s solicitor if necessary to agree on the right terms.
Advice if you have been given a postnuptial agreement to sign
If your spouse’s solicitor has drafted a postnuptial agreement and presented it to you, we strongly advise that you take independent legal advice before signing. We can go through the agreement and your situation, checking that the document is in your best interests.
Post-civil partnership agreements
If you are in a civil partnership, we offer a similar but tailored service that creates post-civil partnership agreements.
Postnuptial agreement FAQs
What is a postnuptial agreement?
A postnuptial agreement is a document setting out how you and your spouse will deal with various issues, mainly financial ones. It typically includes how matters will be handled now and in the event that you separate.
We will draft a bespoke agreement tailored to your needs. Clauses that are commonly contained in a postnuptial agreement include:
- How your finances will be dealt with during your marriage
- Who has ownership of any specified property and your other main assets
- How property and other assets will be split should you separate
- What will happen to pensions if you divorce
- Who will take responsibility for debt
- How inherited money will be dealt with
- What financial provisions will be made for children
- What provisions will be made for a spouse who gives up their career to raise any children
- Whether either spouse will have maintenance payments, should there be a separation
Should I get a postnuptial agreement?
A postnuptial agreement can be beneficial for most couples, not just those with substantial assets. Those who may benefit from an agreement include:
- Couples where one or both individuals have children from a previous relationship
- Those with businesses, particularly a family buisness
- Those who want to clarify how finances will be dealt with for the avoidance of disputes and misunderstandings
- Parents, particularly where one party will be giving up their career to care for children and so would be in a financially weaker position
- Those with substantial assets or debts
- Those who have inherited or may inherit money
How long after marriage can you get a postnuptial agreement?
There is no deadline for obtaining a postnuptial agreement. You may want to consider it if your circumstances change, for example, if you inherit money, decide to move to the UK from overseas, or you have children. A postnuptial agreement can also be advisable if you have a business that has expanded or you will be taking on a share of a family business at some point during your marriage.
How much will a postnuptial agreement cost me?
The cost of having a postnuptial agreement drafted or advice on signing one will depend on its complexity and the level of assets to be dealt with in the document.
Our postnuptial solicitors offer an outstanding service and excellent value for money. If you would like to discuss the potential costs, please feel free to call us.
A postnuptial agreement can often save couples a substantial sum if they decide to separate in the future, as the process of putting a financial order in place for divorce will be quicker, easier, and less contentious.
What cannot be included in a postnuptial agreement?
While you can include certain provisions relating to children in a postnuptial agreement, the court is very clear that any ruling it makes will be in a child’s best interests.
While you can include financial provisions for children, the court will not follow this if it believes that a larger provision should be made.
Similarly, you can set out how you envisage child arrangements to be dealt with should you separate, but in the event that this happens, the court will make a different ruling if it feels that the agreement is not right for your child.
This means that it is often better to avoid trying to make future decisions for any children you may have.
Is a postnuptial agreement legally binding?
A postnuptial agreement is not legally binding, but provided that certain criteria are met, the courts will usually follow the terms of an agreement. These criteria are:
- The agreement must be signed and witnessed as a deed
- It must have been freely entered into, without pressure or coercion
- Both parties must have made a full financial disclosure to each other
- The agreement must be fair
- Both parties’ needs must be met
- Both parties must have had independent legal advice before entering into the agreement and they should both understand the implications of signing
- The agreement must not prejudice the interests of any children
Where the court is satisfied that the agreement does not favour one party over the other and that the terms are aligned with the list of circumstances to be considered by the court in making a financial order on divorce, it is likely that the agreement will be followed.
The issues to be considered by the court when splitting finances include the following:
- The income, earning capacity, property, and other financial resources each party has and is likely to have in the foreseeable future
- Their financial needs, obligations, and responsibilities, including any in the foreseeable future
- The standard of living enjoyed by the family during the marriage
- The parties’ ages and the duration of the marriage
- Any physical or mental disability of either party
- The contributions that each party has made or is likely to make in the foreseeable future to the welfare of the family, including looking after the home and children
In drafting a postnuptial agreement, we can advise you on what the court is likely to consider to be fair and reasonable.
Speak to our postnuptial agreement solicitors in London today
Contact our expert postnuptial agreement lawyers in London now by calling 0330 025 0176 or by using the contact form for a prompt response.