Prenuptial agreements
Prenuptial agreements are financial agreements which effectively contracts the parties out of the jurisdiction of the family law act.
Prenuptial agreements are often considered when parties are looking to protect assets accumulated by one or both parties before the relationship. A prenuptial agreement decides ahead of time. How property accumulated beforehand and accumulated during the relationship will be divided in the event of relationship breakdown.
There are many factors which can impact upon the effectiveness of a prenuptial agreement and they are complicated documents requiring a high level of expertise in the preparation. They are not suitable in every situation.
Our family lawyers can advise you whether a prenuptial agreement would be of any assistance to you in asset protection, particularly where assets accumulated by both parties need to be considered. This is particularly relevant for older couples who have family obligations and wish to ensure there children from their first relationship are not disadvantaged.
Financial agreements
A financial agreement can be made at any time during a marriage or following separation. The purpose of the financial agreement, the same as a financial agreement made prior to marriage, is to regulate the division of assets on marriage breakdown, without going to the family court.
There is a high level of complexity involved and specialist legal advice is recommended before considering whether a financial agreement would meet your particular needs. Hadley Family Law have the experience to help you decide whether or not a financial agreement is the best option for you in your particular circumstances