Dallas Post-Marital Agreement Attorney

Discuss Your Options with Our Firm

Are you a married individual who is looking to protect your assets from an uncertain future? If so, a post-marital agreement may be the best means of meeting your needs. Post-marital agreements are legal documents that establish what assets and property belong to which spouse during marriage, as well as in the event of a future divorce.

No one ever hopes to get divorced, but the future is never certain. Make sure to protect your property and assets as soon as possible by retaining a Dallas postmarital agreement attorney who can help you draft a post-marital agreement.

Why You Need a Lawyer for a Post-Marital Agreement in Dallas

Having an attorney by your side to guide you as you draft your post-marital agreement or pre-marital agreement ensures that you will make it as strong and unambiguous as possible. The wording that you use in your agreement is very important, since confusing or unclear statements could cause you to lose possession of assets or property in a divorce - assets and property that rightfully belong to you.

What Can I Include in My Postnup?

Like many states in the U.S., Texas utilizes elements of the Uniform Premarital and Marital Agreement Act, written by the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Law in 1983, to dictate how marital agreements operate in the state.

You can use a postmarital agreement to:

• Determine how you and your spouse will distribute community property in the event of a divorce;
• Define what property acquired during your marriage should be considered separate property, and what should be considered community property;
• Decide how both parties are allowed to utilize community property, including terms for the selling, buying, use, transfer, exchange, abandon, lease, consumption, and more of community property;
• Set terms for distributing community property if the marriage ends involuntarily (such as with the death of a spouse);
• Decide to eliminate or modify the amount of spousal support owed by one spouse to the other in the event of a divorce;
• Establish how the parties will draft estate planning documents, such as a will or trust, with regards to the marital agreement; and
• Decide who benefits from the life insurance policies held by each spouse.

As you can see, marital agreements are more widely applicable than many people believe. However, you cannot utilize a marital agreement to determine how you and your spouse will handle child custody or support in the event of a divorce.

Not all marital agreements remain valid forever. To establish a marital agreement, both parties must hire their own legal representatives and follow specific guidelines, such as allowing the other party a set amount of time to review the proposed terms of the agreement.

Additionally, the parties must completely disclose their assets and liabilities to each other while drafting the agreement. For this reason, marital agreements are a great way to get on the same page as your spouse financially and ensure you maintain an equitable partnership.

Even if both parties sign a marital agreement, a court may rule it invalid if:

• One of the parties was coerced into signing the agreement against their will;
• One of the parties failed to properly disclose their property to the other while drafting the agreement;
• One party mistakenly signed the agreement or committed fraud through the agreement;
• The agreement is unconscionable for some other reason.

Courts often consider agreements unconscionable if the parties' circumstances changed considerably since signing the agreement, and the agreement hasn't changed to reflect those adjustments. For example, if one party loses a significant amount of property post-signing, the original terms of the agreement may no longer be equitable for both parties.

For this reason, it's a good idea to consistently review your marital agreement and ensure that its terms remain equitable throughout your marriage.

Discuss Your Situation with O’Neil Wysocki P.C.

Our postnuptial agreement lawyers in Dallas at O’Neil Wysocki P.C. can help you draft a clear and concise agreement that lists everything that belongs to you and the other spouse, and how your property should be divided in case of a divorce. Our team has four certified family law specialists and more than 225 years of combined legal experience. If you are in need of compassionate service and relentless representation, look no further than O’Neil Wysocki P.C.

Attorneys O'Neil and Wysocki founded our practice with the desire to provide high-quality service and results to clients throughout the Dallas area. Do not hesitate to contact O’Neil Wysocki P.C. and learn what we can do to protect your assets after marriage.

Call (972) 852-8000!