2 Tips For Avoiding Duress Claims If You Ever Need Your Prenup

Prenuptial agreements offer a solid way to make the division of wealth fair in the event of a divorce. However, there are some circumstances in which prenups can be overturned in divorce court, one of which is a claim that the contract was signed under duress. If your future spouse were to claim they signed your prenuptial agreement under duress, they would essentially be telling the judge that the agreement should be thrown out because they felt pressured or coerced into putting their signature on the page.   

Fortunately, it will be up to your spouse to prove that they were under duress at the time your prenup was finalized, and here are two things you can do to help prevent them from doing so.

Finalize Your Prenup Long Before Marriage

If your spouse is disputing the validity of your prenup, you'll want to demonstrate that they had plenty of time to consider the contract before getting married, as opposed to being pressured into signing it at the last minute. A lot of time and effort goes into planning  weddings, and family members often travel from afar to attend the events. Your spouse would have a pretty hard time refusing to sign a prenup and calling off the wedding if you approached him or her for the first time about it right before the big day. In fact, with so much effort and social pressure on the hinge, they might even feel as though they had to sign it.

If you discussed the prenup long before the wedding, though -- before the invites were sent and before any time or money was spent on the wedding planning -- then there's no way your spouse could blame wedding day-pressure for making them sign.

Have Separate Lawyers From Beginning To End

While it is possible for you and your future spouse to use the same attorney during the negotiation and drafting stage of building a prenup, it's not a good idea. If your marriage were to ever go poorly, you'll want to prove that your spouse was protected from the get-go by having a third party act in their best interest and their best interest alone.

If you ever face a divorce, having separate lawyers when creating your prenup will help prove that you and your spouse were on even playing fields when your prenuptial agreement was created and finalized. 

Be advised that neither of the above 2 tips is a surefire method of preventing your future spouse from claiming duress and having your prenuptial agreement overturned in the event of divorce. They will, however, help make a case against duress. For more advice on how to craft a foolproof prenup, visit a lawyer (such as one from Erickson Law Office) who specializes in divorce law.

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