When you’re planning a wedding, there’s so much to do that it’s easy to lose sight of one important task: protecting yourself and your financial future should you and your soon-to-be spouse end up needing to separate or divorce. The best way to do that is by creating a premarital agreement with help from an experienced premarital agreements lawyer in Virginia.
Unfortunately, these agreements have a reputation for being the cause of divorce, but nothing could be further from the truth. They protect you and your future spouse from costly disputes and ensure that you start your marriage with clear lines of communication. Here are a few of the ways that premarital agreements can help protect your future.
These Agreements Help You Protect Your Assets
In a premarital agreement, you’re able to outline which assets belong to you, which ones will be jointly owned by you and your spouse, and which will remain in your spouse’s name only. By outlining who owns each type of asset before you get married, you’ll protect the assets that are most important to you.
Should you and your spouse get a divorce, they won’t have a claim on the assets you hold in your name as long as they’re protected in the premarital agreement.
You Can Come to Agreements Without Dealing With Emotional Stress
Even an uncontested divorce can be stressful, and reaching agreements may not always be easy. By figuring out how you and your spouse will handle the separation of assets and other financial details before you get married, you’ll spare yourself the stress of managing negotiations during an already stressful time.
Furthermore, by agreeing to the terms of a premarital agreement, you’ll be reaching those agreements when you’re still actively working together as a team. This can ensure a fair distribution of assets.
The Agreements Help Establish Division of Expenses
Though one of the key features of a premarital agreement is to determine the distribution of assets, they also help create a clear division of your expenses whether you and your spouse combine finances or not. This is especially useful if you’re worried about your future partner covering their full share of the costs.
Your agreement will outline who is responsible for which payments and can reduce the risk of either partner using money that doesn’t belong to them to cover costs that they originally agreed to pay for.
They Help Protect Your Children’s Interest
If you have children from a previous marriage, a premarital agreement allows you to set aside specific assets for them and them alone. Should you and your spouse divorce, the court cannot use the assets you set aside for your children in the settlement. Those will stay safe and remain available for your children and no one else.
Premarital Agreements Can Be a Smart Choice
Creating a premarital agreement can help you and your spouse avoid a lot of stress and ire should you get a divorce. If you’re interested in creating an agreement, make sure you work with an experienced premarital agreement lawyer in Virginia.
The team at AC Rieman Law is here to help. Contact us today to schedule a free consultation.