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Difference between revisions of "Marriage Agreements"
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→Legal and formal requirements of a marriage agreement
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The point of entering into a marriage agreement is so that, at some later time, the contract will be enforceable in court if the parties fail to live up to it. As such, a marriage agreement, just like any other family law agreement, must conform to certain basic rules, including the following: | The point of entering into a marriage agreement is so that, at some later time, the contract will be enforceable in court if the parties fail to live up to it. As such, a marriage agreement, just like any other family law agreement, must conform to certain basic rules, including the following: | ||
*A marriage agreement must be | *A marriage agreement must be in writing. | ||
*The agreement must be signed by each party, and should be signed in the presence of a witness. | *The agreement must be signed by each party, and should be signed in the presence of a witness. | ||
*Neither party should be under a legal disability, however children who are parents or spouses may enter into a binding agreement. | *Neither party should be under a legal disability when they sign the agreement, however children who are parents or spouses may enter into a binding agreement. | ||
*The agreement must clearly identify the parties and the nature of their rights and obligations to one another. | *The agreement must clearly identify the parties and the nature of their rights and obligations to one another. | ||
In addition to these simple formalities of a proper family law agreement, you might want to think about certain other principles of contract law | In addition to these simple formalities of a proper family law agreement, you might want to think about certain other principles of contract law such as these: | ||
*The parties must each enter into the agreement of their own free will, without any coercion or duress by the other party, or by anyone else for that matter. | *The parties must each enter into the agreement of their own free will, without any coercion or duress by the other party, or by anyone else for that matter. | ||
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*If a term of a marriage agreement is found to be invalid, only the invalid part of the agreement will stop being in effect. The remainder of the agreement will continue to be valid and binding on the parties. | *If a term of a marriage agreement is found to be invalid, only the invalid part of the agreement will stop being in effect. The remainder of the agreement will continue to be valid and binding on the parties. | ||
Aside from these considerations, it is also important to remember that marriage agreements are usually only meant to be used at some unknown time in the future. While separation agreements are intended to work immediately from the moment they are signed, marriage agreements usually aren't intended to work until some later time, usually upon the spouses' separation. As a result, it can be difficult to guess what each party's situation will be like when the agreement begins to operate and guess whether it will still be appropriate and fair. Because of these problems, hiring the services of a lawyer to prepare a marriage agreement is highly recommended | Aside from these considerations, it is also important to remember that marriage agreements are usually only meant to be used at some unknown time in the future. While separation agreements are intended to work immediately from the moment they are signed, marriage agreements usually aren't intended to work until some later time, usually upon the spouses' separation. As a result, it can be difficult to guess what each party's situation will be like when the agreement begins to operate and guess whether it will still be appropriate and fair. Because of these problems, hiring the services of a lawyer to prepare a marriage agreement is highly recommended. | ||
==The possible subjects of a marriage agreement== | ==The possible subjects of a marriage agreement== | ||