Fraud or Duress Can Invalidate A Prenuptial Agreement

Prenuptial agreements, or ‘prenups,’ are much more common than they used to be, and many states have accordingly simplified their laws on how to execute one, as well as on what can and cannot be contained in the agreement itself. A prenup is a contract, and legally binds both parties once it has been executed, with rare exceptions. This means that before signing your name to a prenup, it is your responsibility to be aware of any major ‘red flags’ that can cause issues in the future.

Child Support May Not Be Decided In Prenup

Florida’s law on prenuptial agreements is straightforward, listing what constitutes “property” and setting a wide range of actions that are permissible under the agreement. For example, state law allows a marrying couple in Florida to establish a plan for dividing assets and debts upon divorce with their prenup. Indeed, the law states that any matter not specified in the law, as long as it does not violate public policy or any law “imposing a criminal penalty,” can be disposed of in a prenuptial agreement.

The one stipulated right that is expressly forbidden from being disposed of in a prenup is that of a child to support. In Florida, the right to child support belongs to the child or children, not the parent, and as one might imagine, no one may annul a right that does not belong to them in the first place. If your soon-to-be spouse still wants to argue about the possibility of paying child support far down the road, this may pose an issue later on.

Both Spouses Must Agree

In general, there are only three tenets that one must have in order to have executed a valid prenup: (1) the contract is in writing, signed by both parties; (2) each party must have voluntarily provided a full financial disclosure to the other; and (3) neither was forced or induced to sign under duress. If there is reason to believe that one spouse signed the document against their will, it may invalidate the entire agreement, or it may simply invalidate the provisions that a judge would find unlawful.

Duress can be more difficult to prove than fraud, but both fundamentally go against the entire idea of a contract, simply because a contract is intended to record a “meeting of the minds” – that is, the two parties are supposed to be in perfect agreement before the document is executed. If no ‘meeting of the minds’ occurred, it is possible to argue that no contract exists. While every situation is different, it is worth consulting with the right attorney if you believe that you have been pushed into a situation you do not wish to be in.

Contact A Hollywood, FL Prenuptial Agreement Attorney

If you are planning your future with a person and you want to manage your potential liabilities in the event of a divorce, a prenup can be a good idea – but only if you both are on the same page, so to speak. A Hollywood, FL family attorney from the Law Offices of Steven A. Mason, P.A. can help to answer your questions and to help you decide your best options going forward. Call our office today to speak to an attorney.

Source:

leg.state.fl.us/Statutes/index.cfm?App_mode=Display_Statute&URL=0000-0099/0061/Sections/0061.079.html