There are a number of good things that you can do for your marriage, including listening to your spouse, prioritizing compromise, and even forming a postnuptial agreement.
Texas maintains strict rules for doing the latter, however, so if you’re thinking about forming a postnup, working with a skilled family law attorney who has experience creating pre- and postnuptial agreements is strongly encouraged.
At the Law Office of Ben Carrasco, our attorneys are prepared to guide you through the process of creating a post marital agreement in Texas.
To schedule a consultation with an experienced Austin marital agreement lawyer, please fill out the form below.
Most people are more familiar with the term prenuptial agreement than they are with a postnuptial agreement. But the two documents do exactly the same thing: outline expectations for how finances will be handled both during the marriage and in the event of divorce or death of one of the parties.
The only significant difference between a prenuptial agreement and a postnuptial agreement is that the former is created prior to marriage, whereas the latter is created post-marriage.
Postnuptial agreements are used to outline the financial responsibilities, privileges, and details that are relevant to a marriage and to the parties of a marriage.
Examples of things that are typically found in a postnuptial agreement include:
As you can see, postnuptial agreements are used to resolve financial matters. They are not used to completely bar a spouse from being able to collect alimony in the event of divorce, ensure that only one parent will have custody of children in the event of a divorce, or list any ludicrous requirements of the marriage (such as that one spouse must vacuum the house every Thursday, or else).
While most things, especially those related to financial agreements, are totally okay within a postnuptial agreement, there are a few exceptions.
Namely, agreements related to child custody or child support cannot be formed, nor can any agreements or arrangements that are illegal or unconscionable.
For example, a judge may find it unconscionable if the terms of a prenuptial agreement completely bar a spouse who did not work and had given up their career in order to stay home with young children from receiving spousal support in the event of a divorce.
How the agreement is formed is also important. If the agreement is not formed in compliance with the following criteria, a judge may declare it invalid at a later date:
To draft a valid post nuptial agreement in Texas, it’s always best to consult an experienced family attorney. Your attorney can help you identify specifics to your marital situation that you had not considered. In addition, your attorney will check that you and your spouse comply with postnuptial agreement requirements.
Forming a postnuptial agreement may not sound like the most romantic thing that you can do for your marriage or your spouse, but in truth, working together to form a postnuptial agreement can actually help to foster a culture of communication and cooperation in your marriage – forming a postnuptial agreement is a big deal, and will require that both of you work together.
In addition to the practice in compromising that the formation of a postnuptial agreement will surely demand, other benefits of forming a postnuptial agreement include:
In addition to these very practical benefits of a postnuptial agreement, consider that when you form a postnuptial agreement, which you will do with your spouse at a time in your marriage when cooperation is possible, you mitigate the contention that often accompanies a divorce.
Indeed, if you and your spouse do decide to divorce, the terms of the divorce (with the exception of child custody and child support) will already be spelled out. This will also allow you to expedite the divorce process, minimize high lawyer and court fees, and move forward with as little stress as possible.
You might consider a postnuptial agreement if you encounter any of these circumstances during your marriage:
While some of these circumstances present risk factors for divorce and others don’t, a postnuptial agreement doesn’t doom your marriage to failure. In fact, a postnuptial agreement can take financial worries off the table, giving you and your spouse the freedom to resolve other differences in marriage counseling.
Smart financial planning doesn’t mean that you are giving up on your marriage. If your spouse has reservations about a postnuptial agreement, encourage them to seek a family attorney of their own so that their best interests are represented too.
There are a number of do-it-yourself Texas postnuptial agreement forms that you can find online and file on your own, but this is not recommended.
When you form your postnuptial agreement on your own without legal counsel, there is too much room for error, and you may not know what to look for or what provisions to include to protect your best interests. In fact, in many cases, it is advised that you and your spouse are both represented by your own attorneys.
One of the biggest parts of forming a postnuptial agreement that is valid and enforceable is ensuring that both parties fully disclose their assets and debts. An attorney can thoroughly analyze your finances to ensure this requirement is satisfied.
Filling out a postnuptial agreement with an online form may save you money in the short term. However, it could cost you significantly in the event of divorce or other estate disbursement. If you make a mistake on your postnuptial agreement, your entire estate plan could be thrown out. It is usually much smarter to use a skilled family attorney who will make sure that your best interests are detailed in a valid postnuptial agreement.
To guide you through the process of creating a postnuptial agreement that is valid and enforceable, please contact our experienced family law firm today. Our postnuptial agreement Texas legal team has years of experience, and we are ready to start advising you immediately.
Ben Carrasco is a highly skilled family law attorney based in Austin, Texas, known for his extensive expertise in family law and business litigation. While his primary focus is family law, Ben brings a wealth of experience in litigating diverse business disputes, ranging from breach of contract and collections to business torts, fraud, and real estate matters. In his family law practice, Ben navigates all aspects of the field, including divorce, child custody, support, property division, and more, offering clients expert guidance throughout the litigation process. His legal journey began in complex commercial litigation, initially with a global law firm and later with a prominent Austin-based firm. However, driven by a desire to make a direct impact on people's lives and embrace the human element of the law, Ben transitioned to family law, a decision that has proven to be deeply rewarding. A proud Austin native with roots in California, Ben completed his undergraduate studies at the University of California, Berkeley, before earning his law degree at Stanford Law School, where he excelled in legal writing and served as an associate editor of the Stanford Law and Policy Review.
