Issue 21.09
Entering into a premarital agreement may be one of the best ways to show that you love your fiancé. That may sound strange. But the communication about your respective financial situations and what you expect to pass on to your respective children can bring you closer together and help you have a happier,more peaceful relationship.
Some perceive premarital agreements as a hurdle to entering marriage. They may believe that bringing up the topic demonstrates a lack of trust. However,premarital agreements help you learn more about each other,make each other feel more comfortable about issues that are of concern,and certainly clarify how you will handle your money and your estates when you pass away.
All of us,regardless of our ages and financial standing,have money concerns to talk about with our partner,and if we avoid doing that and wait until there are problems,it may be too late. Whether you have been married before,you have children by a prior marriage,or you have assets or not,it’s important to communicate and consider a premarital agreement to assist you to clarify your intentions concerning your property.
Premarital agreements become especially important for those getting married and have children by a prior marriage. Often people have assets that they are bringing into the marriage or children from a prior marriage. Without a premarital agreement,it’s quite possible that those children by their prior marriage could be inadvertently disinherited upon your death. Preparing a premarital agreement is good estate planning.
If you don’t want to enter into a premarital agreement,there are some things that you still should do. First,prepare an inventory of everything you own and everything you owe as of your wedding day. You can do this without even sharing it with your spouse,although sharing with your spouse and having them sign it is ideal to show that they have reviewed it. Then any property you want to keep separate and not treat as marital property should be held as your absolute separate property. For example,if you sell any of your separate property,deposit the proceeds into an account in just your name,and don’t use the proceeds for the benefit of the marriage.
You may be tempted to use your separate property account for expenses of the marriage,like a down payment or improvement to a house or an investment in a business. Just realize that every time you tap your separate property for a marital purpose,you make it look more like marital property,and questions begin to arise as to whether you intended to keep it separate or to be treated as a gift to your spouse.
By discussing these issues before your marriage,or even after your marriage but before they become a problem,will strengthen your relationship and prevent conflicts and disagreements between your surviving spouse and your children at your death about whose property is whose.
Sean Sullivan is an attorney and shareholder of the firm of Brindley Sullivan,PC,located at 382 S. Bluff,Ste. 150,St. George,UT 84770,(435) 673-9220.
