For couples in Dallas who might not be seeing eye-to-eye and are having trouble resolving a dispute but don’t want to get a divorce, there is an option known as a postnuptial agreement. Many people have been taking this step for years and it is an alternative to settle family legal issues without having to go through the legal wrangling of the end of a marriage and everything that goes with it. Couples who have been married for years and don’t want to part are increasingly looking into the family law option of a postnuptial agreement.
One couple approaching their 50s had been together since college, got married and had two children. Financial disagreements were taking their toll on an otherwise happy marriage. They had a diametrically opposed viewpoint on how to use money and run their finances. He wanted to borrow to make more money in the long run; she wanted security and to live a debt free life. They decided to pursue a postnuptial agreement as they tried to find ways to solve their family legal issues amicably.
Almost half the attorneys asked about this option reported an increase in the number of couples using it between the years 2002 and 2007. Many issues can be settled with a postnuptial agreement ranging from finances to child care to helping around the house to how often relatives get to visit. The couple in this example came to an agreement to place the family home in the wife’s name so it would no longer be an option to borrow against it to support the husband’s debt accumulation. Although the debts stayed in the same range they were in before the agreement, they’re not fighting about it anymore.
Couples who don’t want to part ways but can’t seem to get a handle on family law issues that continually crop up might want to think about a postnuptial agreement. It might not completely assuage the problems, but it can help a couple to stay together when, in the past, the issues would have festered until a split became unavoidable. For advice on a postnuptial agreement, discussing the matter with an attorney can answer all questions about it before moving forward.
Source: CNN.com, “Quit fighting — get a postnuptial agreement,” Robert DiGiacomo, accessed on Oct. 21, 2014